


Shifting Hearts

by Vampirerex1



Category: Transformers (Bayverse)
Genre: Adventure, F/M, Multi, Romance, Supernatural - Freeform, Watersports
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-28
Updated: 2015-11-29
Packaged: 2018-05-03 20:21:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 48
Words: 109,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5305520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vampirerex1/pseuds/Vampirerex1
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's said that the West was built on legends; tall tales that help us make sense of things too great or too terrifying to believe. This is the story of a Feline Shape Shifter and how she makes herself a life in the midst of four Autonomous Robotic Organisms from another planet, how she deals with splitting her heart four ways, how she lives with being hunted and how she copes with being the stuff of legend.</p><p>IN THE PROCESS OF BEING REWRITTEN</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> "Introduction" - Italic
> 
> Story - Normal
> 
> "Speech" - Normal
> 
> Thoughts - Italic
> 
> (Scene/POV change) - Bold
> 
> Dreams - Bold/Italic
> 
> ~Flashbacks~ - Bold/Italic
> 
> :Comm. Link: - Bold
> 
> ::Bond Link:: - Bold/Italic
> 
> -Cybertronian- - Italic

_"It's said that the West was built on legends; tall tales that help us make sense of things too great or too terrifying to believe. This is the legend of the Shape Shifter. Story goes that a Shape Shifting goddess formed a forbidden bond with a mortal human, mating with him several times. When the other gods and goddesses found out about this forbidden bond, they executed the human male and locked the goddess up. Soon after, the Shape Shifting goddess bore three children, two girls and one boy, this angered the other gods and goddesses and they planned to execute the children as penance for the Shape Shifting Goddess' sins._

_It's said that when the goddess heard about this, she bestowed upon her three children her powers, giving them the ability to shift their form at will. To her first daughter, she bestowed the ability to shift into any airborne animal, to her second daughter, the ability to shift into any waterborne animal and to her only son, she bestowed the ability to shift into any land based animal. It's said that she then sent them to Earth._

_When the other gods and goddesses came to kill the children, it's said that in a last act of defiance, the Shape Shifting goddess used the last of her power to bestow upon several random humans, the abilities she bestowed upon her children, before committing suicide. It may be a legend, but…the thing about legends…is…sometimes they're true._

_But this isn't a story about a man who has the power of hellfire bestowed upon him and cursed to ride the Earth doing the devil's bidding, this is the story of a Feline Shape Shifter and how she makes herself a life in the midst of four Autonomous Robotic Organisms from another planet, how she deals with splitting her heart four ways, how she lives with being hunted and how she copes with being the stuff of legend"_

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

Thunder echoed in the distance; a single drop of rain landed on the ground, eagerly soaked up by the parched Earth. This drop was followed by another, and another until it was raining heavily. A young couple ran through the trees, the sounds of barking, whistling and yelling emanating from not far behind them. A flash of lightning illuminated their terrified forms as the woman pointed forwards, towards a lone house in the middle of nowhere. The man nodded and they both took off towards the house, the man holding the woman up as she stumbled. Upon arriving at the house, the young woman unstrapped something from her back and placed it upon the sheltered porch, giving it a kiss, before placing a large envelope on the porch. The young woman knocked on the door; before glancing down at the thing on the porch one last time and running off with the man, the yells, whistles and barks following after them.

The door to the lone house opened and there stood a woman with blonde hair; she looked around outside for a few seconds before a rustle and a gurgling noise made her lower her gaze. Instantly, her hand went to her mouth and she crouched down, picking the bundle up in her arms, the envelope along with it, she looked around again before going inside her house, closing the door as she did. Settling herself at the kitchen table, the blonde haired woman held the bundle in one arm, opening it up with her other hand and looking at the little pink baby inside, a small smile adorning her lips as she did. Looking over at the large brown envelope sat on the table and reached for it, somehow managing to open it with the one hand and tip the contents out. Inside was a booklet and a letter, she picked the letter up first.

_Dear Sir/Madam_

_By the time you read this letter, my husband and I will already have been caught, or worse, dead. You have in your possession a most treasured being; our only child Alexx, we would have loved to have raised her ourselves, but due to foreseen circumstances, we are no longer able to do that and our daughter is now in your care. Please take good care of her. Within the envelope this letter was in, is a handbook titled how to care for a Shifter and this will help you take care of our little girl to the best of your ability._

_I expect you are asking yourself what a shifter is and why you were chosen to take care of such valuable cargo. The truth is; it is possible that we ran into your house by coincidence and deemed you and your family trustworthy enough to leave our daughter with. Now, a shifter is a being with the supernatural ability to shift their shape into an animal at will. All is explained in the handbook. We beg that you don't go to the authorities with the gift you have been given, as they will undoubtedly take her away from you and she may end up in a family who do not like shifters, there are people out there who will try to harm her._

_Please take care of our daughter; she will need all the care she can get to survive. We wish you all the luck in the world as now your lives will become complicated._

The young blonde woman looked away from the letter and looked at the baby as she made a little noise, gently rocking her to soothe her again. She then put the letter down and released a big sigh, putting her elbow on the table and pressing her fingers and thumb to her forehead.

"How am I to explain this to Will?" She asked.

She looked down to the baby, whose beautiful baby blue eyes were staring up at her. Another sigh escaped her and she shook her head, before getting up and walking over to the counter tops and opening a drawer, pulling it out and emptying it, before placing it on the table and placing the baby into it. She then sat down and picked up the handbook, turning it over and looking at the cover, seeing that it was hand written beautifully.

"Must've taken your parents a long time to do this perfectly" she muttered.

The baby just gurgled and kicked out, sticking her hand in her mouth. The blonde haired woman looked at the little baby and gave a small smile, before opening the handbook.

"Let's see how to take care of you then shall we?" She questioned.

She opened the handbook to the first page and began to read. Her eyebrows shooting up as she continued to read. Her gaze flicked from the baby in the drawer, to the handbook, before she put the handbook down and puffed out a breath of air.

"You'll be a teenager in Eighteen months? God you grow fast" she said.

She shook her head again and picked the handbook up again, continuing to read. It took her about an hour to read the entire handbook from cover to cover and even then, she didn't really get most of what it had told her. However, she got up and picked the baby and the drawer up and headed upstairs, going into her bedroom and putting the drawer on the floor next to her bed and got under the sheets, laying her head on the pillow and closing her eyes. Tomorrow her husband would be back from his tour and she knew she'd have a hard time explaining the fact that they had a baby who would be almost fully grown child in Eighteen months.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(The next day)**

The blonde haired woman got out of bed and took the baby into the bathroom with her, while she did what she had to do and had a shower. Once done, she took the drawer and baby back into the bedroom and got herself dressed, before looking down at the baby and clicking her tongue. She reached onto the bedside table and picked up the phone there, dialling a number and waiting for the other person to answer.

"Hey Cherri, it's Sarah; listen, I need a favour" she began.

Sarah began to list off items that she needed, but didn't explain why she needed them, instead telling her friend that she would explain everything when Cherri dropped the items off. She said goodbye and thank you to Cherri and put the phone down and then picked the baby up again, rocking her a little. As far as she was aware, as it didn't say anything in the handbook, normal baby milk should be alright for Alexx, well…she hoped that Alexx would be alright with baby milk.

About an hour later Cherri arrived at Sarah's house and knocked on the door with the items that the blonde woman had asked for. The blonde woman smiled at the brown haired woman and took the bag with the items, before inviting the brown haired woman in. Cherri and Sarah walked into the kitchen and Cherri was instantly shocked when she saw the baby in the drawer on the table.

"What the…why didn't you tell me you were pregnant?" Cherri asked.

Sarah looked at her and smiled a little.

"I wasn't. I found her on the doorstep last night" she replied.

Cherri looked at Sarah and then walked over to the little baby, looking down at the perfect little round face and gasping.

"Oh, who would want to abandon this little cutie-pie?" She questioned.

Sarah poured the water on the tea bags in both cups on the counter, before turning to Cherri.

"She wasn't abandoned" she said.

She picked up the letter and handed it to Cherri, who took it and began to read it, her brow furrowing in confusion.

"Shifter, but I thought Shape Shifters were just stuff of legend" she stated.

Sarah shrugged and handed Cherri a cup before putting the milk away and picking up her own cup.

"Apparently they're not, but the letter says that people would be hunting her, trying to hurt her" she said.

Cherri looked at Sarah and then looked at the baby, before taking a sip of her tea. Her gaze then snapped to Sarah again.

"Isn't Will home today?" She questioned.

Sarah nodded and gave a bit of a sigh.

"Yeah, but I don't know how I'm going to explain this to him" she replied.

Cherri smiled and put her tea on the table, walking up to the drawer and pulling the baby out of it and beginning to rock her.

"I'm sure he'll be fine Sarah, he wanted kids right?" She asked.

Sarah nodded but then put her tea on the counter.

"Yeah, but I'm sure he meant that he wanted kids of our own, not some other person's kid" she answered.

Cherri sent a glance Sarah's way.

"Well, if he's not happy about having this little sweetheart, then he's not the right man for you Sarah. I'm sure he'll love her" she said.

Sarah sighed and nodded.

"I hope you're right Cherri, I really do hope" she stated.

Cherri smiled and put the baby back into the drawer, before picking up her tea and beginning to drink it.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Later that day)**

An army vehicle pulled up outside the house, causing Sarah to hurry to the window, a huge grin appearing on her face before she ran to the door, opened it and ran out, throwing herself at her husband as he walked up the path. Will dropped his bags and lifted his wife up, pulling her into a huge hug and kissing her. Pulling away, Sarah looked up into her husband's blue eyes and gave a small smile.

"I have a surprise for you, and I really hope you'll like it" she said.

Will raised an eyebrow and bent down to retrieve his bags.

"What kind of surprise?" He asked.

Sarah smiled and began to walk towards the house, prompting Will to follow her. Once inside, he dropped his bags by the door and as soon as he turned around, he had a pink bundle placed in his arms. He looked down at the bundle and then looked up at his wife.

"You didn't tell me that you were…" he began.

Sarah shook her head.

"I wasn't…I found her on the porch last night" she said.

Will furrowed his brow and looked down at the baby in his arms, before looking back to his wife, seeing the face she was making before shaking his head.

"Oh no, no way Sarah. We can't keep her" he said.

Sarah furrowed her brow.

"Why not Will? She's got no-one else" she stated.

Will raised an eyebrow.

"And you know this for a fact do you?" He asked.

Sarah nodded and walked into the kitchen, coming back out with the letter.

"This was in an envelope that was left with her" she said.

Will handed the baby to Sarah and took the letter, sitting on the couch and beginning to read it. As he did, Sarah began to rock Alexx and when Will had finished, he put the letter on the table and rubbed his face.

"Sarah, I'm not going to put you in danger" he said.

Sarah instantly knew what he was going to say and her face became one of pure anger.

"And we are  ** _not_**  leaving this poor defenceless baby to vultures" she said.

Will looked at Sarah and sighed.

"You're already in danger Sarah, because of me being in the army, it makes you a target. But with keeping this baby, well you might as well paint a target on your back" he argued.

Sarah shook her head.

"Will, this baby needs our protection, for at least Eighteen months" she said.

The black haired man looked at Sarah and furrowed his brow.

"Eighteen months?" He asked.

Sarah nodded.

"She's a Shifter, she'll be almost fully grown in Eighteen months" she replied.

Will sighed and shook his head, knowing that he wasn't going to win this argument. He put his hands up and stood up, walking over to Sarah and pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"Fine, you win. But how're we going to explain a fast growing baby to others?" He asked.

Sarah looked at him and then looked down to Alexx.

"I'm sure we'll figure something out" she said.

Will nodded.

"I guess you're a Lennox now Alexx" he said.

Sarah smiled and lay her head on Will's shoulder.


	2. Chapter 2

_"The legend of the Shifter has been known to take many forms, every religion and culture having their own stories that gradually became more and more distorted as they were passed from generation to generation. Shifters were called by many names, depending on what people believed about them. Some people believed they were shamans, people who could interact with the spirit world, and looked to them in times of hardship, few believed that shifters were skin-walkers, people who could change their form into any animal they wished and many believed that shifters were Naguals, creatures that could transform themselves into any animal. But there were also those people who believed that shifters were dangerous and evil, many of these people believed shifters to be sorcerers or witches and as a result, many shifters were burnt at the stake._

_It wasn't until the early 17th century, during the reign of King Charles 1 that shifters were seen as people rather than witches/sorcerers/Naguals/Skin-Walkers. When the King's chief guard Thomas Moore was injured after rogues attempted to rob his highnesses stagecoach, the horses had been so terrified that they had run and Moore's men had followed, leaving him stranded, alone and bleeding out until a shifter called Godin approached him, in his animal form, before shifting into his human form. At first Thomas was terrified of the creature, begging and pleading to have his life spared, for he had done the creature no harm, before he had passed out due to blood loss._

_It was when he had woken up that he had realised that the creature had moved him from the place he fell, to what appeared to be a cottage of some sort, and he was no longer laying on cold, hard stone, but on a soft, warm bed. Moore had inspected his wound, seeing that not only had it been cleaned rather thoroughly, but it had also been stitched in an almost professional manner. When he had been able to walk again, Moore had made his way slowly, back to the castle, welcomed with open arms, he had told his men that he needed to see the King right away and he had been taken to him._

_Thomas had explained that after the convoy had taken off, he had been approached by a shifter, which had caused numerous gasps among the people. He told of how he passed out in the middle of the road and woke up in a cottage with his wound cleaned and sutured expertly and he told the King that he believed the shifter had something to do with it. With that, the very next day, Charles had sent out a party of guards, to find and retrieve this shifter, so that he may thank him for his good will. Godin accepted this on the condition that Shifters were to be treated less like monsters and more like the people they were"_

**(18 months later)**

Excitement filled the air of the Lennox house, after five months of Will being gone, he was finally on his way home. Alexx had grown into a young woman, looking as if she were in her early mid-teens, but really being only a year old and was constantly out and about, climbing trees and sitting on the roof. In the time that Will had been away, Sarah had given birth to a beautiful little girl, whom she had named Annabelle and Alexx had found that she had a way with the local cats, due to her being a feline shifter. It was a wonder the cats weren't scared of her, considering what animal she shifted into.

Up until now, Sarah had been keeping a close eye on Alexx, making sure that she didn't wander off when they went to the city and always protecting her from people who looked strange. The blonde woman had also started reading the handbook again as well as having read the letter again too. She was baffled about how fast Alexx had grown in the last 18 months, but the more she read the handbook, the clearer everything became. Thankfully, she noted, Alexx wouldn't reach sexual maturity until she was about two years old, so that gave her plenty of time to read the part about feline puberty and also research it on the internet too, so she would be ready. What marred her conscience though, was the fact that, as soon as Alexx reached sexual maturity, the feline shifter would most probably leave her, to find herself a mate and settle down.

Sarah decided that she would forget about that for now, and just enjoy the time she had left with her first daughter, while also looking after her second daughter. It was funny to watch how Alexx acted with Annabelle, at first the dark haired female had been terrified of the baby, but true to her feline nature, curiosity soon got the better of her and she started examining Annabelle, with Sarah watching her every move. Sarah had laughed for a long time when Annabelle had made a high pitched squeal, which made Alexx jump a mile and hide behind the couch.

Watching a human behave in such a way would make most people think she was some kind of crazy, but the blonde woman knew the truth. Currently, Sarah was sat in the kitchen, watching Alexx play with Annabelle with a smile on her face. It seemed that in the few months Annabelle had been around, the feline shifter had formed a kind of special bond with her, running to her if she hurt herself, keeping watch over her like a loyal dog. Because of this, Sarah felt safe enough to get some time to herself every so often, whether that be a lounging soak in the bath or mowing the lawn, she knew Annabelle was protected and safe. As she sat, drinking her coffee, Sarah's mind travelled back to when she and Will had told Alexx of her true heritage and of what she really was.

_**~Flashback~** _

_**Sarah and Will were sat downstairs, thinking that Alexx was in bed and asleep, they were both reading the Shifter handbook, trying to learn as much as they could about the feline shifter they were raising.** _

_**"So, she'll be like an eight year old kid by the time she's six months?" Will asked.** _

_**Sarah looked at him and nodded, before looking back down to the handbook.** _

_**"Yeah, and it says that she'll probably look like she's in her mid teens when she's a yearling" she replied.** _

_**Will nodded and continued to read about Alexx, sighing when he read the part about shifters being hunted. That was all they needed, he was in the military and he was harboring a creature that could and would cause their lives to be hell. He looked to his wife and released another sigh.** _

_**"Are you sure about this Sarah? I mean, we're going to get a lot of stick for this" he said.** _

_**The blonde haired woman looked at her husband and then looked down to the handbook again.** _

_**"What am I supposed to do Will? Just chuck her out on the streets to survive on her own? I can't do that, my maternal instinct for one won't let me" she stated.** _

_**Will growled and ran his hands through his hair, leaning back against the couch, before sitting back up again.** _

_**"Does she at least know what she is?" He asked.** _

_**Sarah shook her head.** _

_**"I haven't told her yet" she answered.** _

_**Will groaned.** _

_**"Well don't you think you'd better?" He questioned.** _

_**Before Sarah could answer, there was the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs and both adults turned to see Alexx appear just under the slanted ceiling, where she sat on the step there.** _

_**"Tell me what?" She asked.** _

_**Will and Sarah looked at each other and then looked at Alexx, before Sarah got up and put her hands together in front of her.** _

_**"Um...why don't you come and sit down" she said.** _

_**Alexx got up and walked the rest of the way down the stairs, before going to sit next to Will, who budged over to make room for her and Sarah. When Alexx had sat down, Sarah sat down too and handed her the handbook.** _

_**"The night I found you, you were left on the porch, I assume by your birth parents. When I found you, I saw that you had a brown envelope resting on your basket and when I took you in, I read it" she said.** _

_**She then handed Alexx the letter from her parents.** _

_**"This was in the brown envelope, along with the handbook" she stated.** _

_**Alexx looked down at the letter and began to read it, her eyes drifting over the words, taking them all in. She could read better than any child her age, because of her abilities, her mind was more developed than a regular child's mind was. When she'd finished, she put the letter down and just sat there.** _

_**"So you're not my real parents" she whispered.** _

_**Sarah put her hand on Alexx's back and rubbed it slightly.** _

_**"No sweetie, but whether we're your blood parents or not, we love you all the same" she said.** _

_**Alexx's head shot up and her eyes narrowed.** _

_**"You might do, but Will doesn't" she said.** _

_**Sarah looked up in time to see Will's eyes go wide, before he leaned forward on his knees.** _

_**"It's not that I don't love you Alexx; it's that...I'm worried" he explained.** _

_**Alexx looked at him and narrowed her eyes.** _

_**"Worried about what?" She asked.** _

_**Will looked at Sarah and then looked at Alexx.** _

_**"About you. If anyone finds out what you are..." he began.** _

_**The shifter female looked between the two humans and raised her eyebrows.** _

_**"What?" She questioned.** _

_**Sarah rubbed Alexx's back again.** _

_**"Alexx, there are some terrible people out there, people who don't like your...uh...breed of...uh...people and they'll try to harm you. As it is, according to what your parents say in the letter, you were supposed to die the night they did" she explained.** _

_**The black haired girl looked at Sarah and her eyes widened, before she looked down and sniffled.** _

_**"I guess that's why I can't go and play with the other kids" she sobbed.** _

_**Sarah's heart broke and she pulled Alexx into a protective hug.** _

_**"Yeah, Alexx...that's why sweetie" she said.** _

_**It didn't take long for Alexx to calm down and when she did, it was with a new understanding of what she was.** _

_**"So...does the handbook say when I'll find out what I'll shift into?" She asked.** _

_**Will picked up the handbook and flipped through it, coming to the page that said 'First shift'. He read it and grimaced a little, before giving a bit of a laugh.** _

_**"It says that the first shift will be like a baby going through the teething stage" he stated.** _

_**Sarah grimaced a little too, before looking at Alexx.** _

_**"Your first shift will be painful then" she said.** _

_**Will continued to flip through and then put the book down and covered his face with his hands. Sarah gave him a worried look.** _

_**"What is it Will?" She asked.** _

_**The man looked at his wife and then looked at his adoptive daughter and sighed.** _

_**"It says that her first shift will be...well...around now really" he said.** _

_**~End Flashback~** _

True to what the handbook had said, Alexx's first shift was quite painful and while the handbook had said that humans weren't supposed to be around someone who was experiencing their first shift, Sarah had ignored that and had stayed with Alexx all throughout the painful experience, eventually seeing the breathtaking animal that her adoptive daughter had shifted into. A majestic Black Panther, or Black Jaguar as the internet had told her, either way, her feline form was absolutely gorgeous. After that, more things had started happening, Alexx had grown a lot faster as had her mind and when Sarah woke up one day to find Alexx missing, well...it had scared the living daylights out of her. But nothing scared her more,than when she had found Alexx sitting atop the roof for the first time, she temporarily forgot that Alexx was a feline shifter and thus had excellent balance and kind of freaked out, scaring Alexx as well.

But the more Alexx did it, the more accustomed Sarah and Will got to yelling out the window or door when dinner was ready or when they needed to talk to her about something. Sarah found it both strange and exciting to have one normal child, a child that would grow at a normal human rate, and one child that would look like she was in her early twenties by the time she was twenty six months old. In a way, the blonde haired woman was glad that Alexx wouldn't be around as much as Annabelle grew up, that way there would be no questions from the youngster about why Alexx was so different and no secrets for the little girl to keep from her friends. She was glad that Annabelle would be able to go to school without knowing about the shifter who was her sister. But the more she thought about it, the more daunting it became, whether Alexx was her biological child or not, in a years time, she would go through what every other mother goes through after eighteen years, empty nest syndrome. She'd heard other parents talking about it, the feeling of complete helplessness and sadness when a child leaves home for the first time.

She dreaded the day Alexx left, without anyone to protect her from the people hunting her, the girl would need to lay low all her life, constantly looking over her shoulder. What a horrible way to live, but necessary if the feline shifter were to survive and live a long and healthy life, and her life would indeed be long, Sarah had looked up the life expectancy for a Jaguar and had seen that in captivity it can live for up to twenty years, but in the wild, it was only eleven years and upon reading the handbook, she saw that, because Alexx was a Shifter, she would live longer than humans and captive Jaguars put together due to her rapid healing rate. Sarah had inadvertantly found this out when Alexx has accidently cut herself on a bit of metal on the roof, she had come inside with a large gash on her arm that was bleeding profusely and Sarah had bandaged it up, after making sure that the blood vessels had constricted by using a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a tea towel. But the next morning when she had taken the bandages off, there was nothing but a pink scar.

Suddenly, the sound of Annabelle crying caught Sarah's attention and she turned to see that Alexx was bringing the baby to her, holding her out as far as her arms would allow her, causing Sarah to first panic, taking the baby off of the shifter, before she began to laugh at the face the black haired teen was making. A sure sign that Annabelle had soiled her diaper. Sarah's laugh dwindled to a mere chuckle as she got the baby changing mat and put it on the table, pulling out a spare diaper and some wipes and baby powder too, she kept her eye on Alexx, watching the faces she made.

"So...you like her when she's not pooping then" she said.

Alexx gave Sarah a look and poked her tongue out in a disgusted way, before making a disgusted sound and pulling her tongue back in.

"You try having a very sensitive sense of smell and see if you like the scent of human poop, especially baby poop" she said.

She leaned back in the chair and crossed her arms over her chest, her hazel eyes glaring daggers at the blonde haired woman, who was still laughing.

"Suck it up Alexx, babies poop and pee all the time" she stated.

The feline shifter nodded.

"Yeah and cry and puke and gurgle and sleep and cry more and poop more and puke more and gurgle more" she listed.

Sarah laughed again and finished changing Annabelle, before unbuttoning her blouse and pulling her bra down, letting the little girl suckle.

"Well...you're gonna have to go through the same thing one day" she said.

Alexx chuckled.

"Yeah, but not for as long. Shifter kids are weaned at four months" she argued.

Sarah smiled and looked down to Annabelle, before looking back up.

"I reckon you'll make a great mom one day Alexx, with the way you play with Anna" she said.

Alexx snorted, but smiled anyway.


	3. Chapter 3

_'While the reign of King Charles I brought with it a golden age for all shifter kind, with his majesty passing a motion that gave all shifters equal rights among humans, it was clear that the peace wasn't going to last. Some time after King Charles II ascended to the throne, he realised his father's mistake, as shifters were beginning to make a name for themselves. Some shifters obeyed the laws put in place by the Kings government while others broke them, they killed humans, maimed, stole from and raped them, all due to one shifter by the name of Onil, who thought, **believed**  that shifters were above humans._

_Onil had a superiority complex, believing that the shifter species as a whole were far more superior to humans. Because of his way of thinking, he started a revolution against human kind, recruiting several other shifters of all shapes and sizes to join him on his quest to enslave mankind to a new race of royal shifters. Unfortunately, this caused the humans to judge the all shifters, even the peaceful ones ignited fear in the humans, causing them to ignore them and treat them like dirt. Many peaceful shifters shied away from the outside world, especially when a group of humans, who quickly became known as the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad started to hunt the shifters down. At first, the bullets were doing nothing, until one member of the ASTS made a harrowing discovery. He found that shifters could be killed with silver, so in light of this, silver bullets were quickly produced and shifters started dropping like flies._

_It wasn't until five years into the reign of King Charles II, that his main advisor made a startling realisation. If Shifters wanted to be treated like humans, then they could be punished like humans too, so once again, shifters were allowed to have the same rights as humans, as well as be punished under the same justice system for their crimes. Unfortunately, this didn't cease the activity of of the ASTS and they continued to hunt shifters all over the world, now that they knew their weakness, they felt empowered. But where there was the destruction of the ASTS, there was another group who didn't go by a name, who cared for the shifters, who all acted normally and went to school, getting veterinary degrees and doctorate degrees and pulled together to help the shifters. One of these guys, was the son of the late Thomas Moore. He hadn't taken up the same position as his father had, instead opting to live a normal life, much to the delight of the shifters'_

**(3 days later)**

Will was on his way home; after everything that had happened, with the bombing of the US SOCCENT Military Base and the battle in Mission City, all he wanted to do was get home and take his little baby girl into his arms for the first time. He hadn't cared when the guys had teased him about it, frankly he couldn't have given a shit what they thought, he was a family man, always had been and always will be and there was nothing wrong with that, well...nothing wrong that  _he_ saw anyway. A small sigh left his lips as he closed his eyes for a second, before opening them again and looking at the road in front of him, thinking about the previous events, giant alien robots, duelling in and destroying half of Mission City, it was surreal and if he hadn't of been there, he would never had believed it. What he found even more strange, was the fact that he seemed to be totally at peace with being  _inside_ one of said alien robots, while it... _he_  navigated the roads leading up to the Lennox household with ease, like he'd been doing it for years. He opened his mouth to attempt to start a conversation with the truck, but then closed it, realising that...he didn't know  _how_ to start a conversation with a super-advanced alien robot, so the rest of the journey was underscored by silence, just as the first half of the journey had been.

As they got closer to the Lennox household, excitement started to flow through his veins, he was about to meet his newborn daughter as well as see his wife and adoptive daughter again after five months. In truth, it wasn't that he was excited to see only Annabelle, but he was also keen to see just how much Alexx had grown both physically and mentally in the five months he'd been gone, he was sure it wouldn't have been much, but still. Before long, they arrived at the house on the top of the hill and Sarah came rushing out, baby in arms. Hurriedly getting out of the black truck, Will walked up to his wife and plucked the baby from her arms, holding the infant up and getting a good look at her, before pulling his wife into a hug and looking around for Alexx, but she wasn't anywhere to be seen.

"Sarah, where's Alexx?" He asked.

The blonde haired woman pulled out of the hug and motioned to the roof, causing Will to give a bit of a smile and go around to the back of the house, looking up at the figure sitting in a slumped position atop the building. He waited to see if the female shifter would realise he was there, but when she continued to stare out to the setting sun, he furrowed his brow and cleared his throat, gaining the attention of his adopted daughter. Through the semi-darkness, Will was able to see the girl's face split into a wide grin, as she got up and ran across the roof, jumping onto the tree and climbing down expertly, before jumping down the last few feet and running over to him, almost knocking him over in a kind of tackle-hug.

"I guess you missed me then huh?" He questioned.

Alexx looked up at him and smiled, nodding enthusiastically.

"Especially when it was on the news that your Base of Operations in Qatar was bombed, me and Sarah thought we'd never see you again" she replied.

Will smiled and hugged her again, before pulling away and taking her hand, walking back around to the front of the house. Everything seemed perfect again, until a loud warning growl emanated from Alexx's chest, something neither of the humans had ever heard from her before, it startled the both of them and caused Annabelle to become a little distressed. The black haired teen just stood there, staring at the truck, eyes fixated on one point and her growl was slowly getting more insistent, before she just turned around, grabbed Annabelle off of Will and bolted indoors. Instantly worried, Will followed her, eventually finding them under the stairs with Alexx crouched protectively over the little girl, eyes flickering between hazel and golden brown. A frown found its way onto his face and he turned around to see Sarah stood there with an almost humourous expression on her face, of which caused Will to become even more confused. He gestured to Alexx, while still looking at his wife.

"What's she doing?" He asked.

Sarah chuckled a little and shook her head, walking up to her husband and wrapping her arms around one of his.

"Alexx has...well...for lack of a better way to put it, she's appointed herself as Annabelle's guardian. Obviously that truck is a threat" she laughed.

She shook her head again and walked over to Alexx and Annabelle, only to be warned off by a threatening growl and an even more threatening look. This stunned her, Alexx had never done that to her before, she'd always let her near Annabelle. A quick glance over to Will saw him staring out the window at the truck with a thoroughly confused and concerned look upon his face. Sarah cast her eyes back to Alexx, before quickly making her way over to where her husband was stood, her hand slipping onto his shoulder, causing him to turn around and look at her.

"What's going on Will?" She asked.

Will made a face like he was in pain and then rubbed his eyes, he sighed and walked over to the couch and sat down on it. He badly wanted to tell Sarah, but certain circumstances prevented him from doing so. He groaned and combed his hand through his short hair, before looking up at his wife.

"I wish I could tell you Sarah, I really wish I could, but it's not something that can be told willy nilly" he said.

Sarah came and sat down next to him, putting her hand on his back.

"Will I don't...I don't understand" she whispered.

The man turned to her and took her hands in his own, looking down at them before raising his eyes to meet hers again.

"It's complicated Sarah and telling you could put you, Alexx and Annabelle in more danger than you're already in. I'm not going to risk either one of you,  _especially_  not with people out looking for Alexx" he explained.

Sarah looked at him again and then nodded in understanding, top secret military business that she wasn't allowed to know about. She was used to that. A glance over to Alexx and Annabelle showed that the female shifter had calmed down a little now, but her eyes were still darting about, as if searching for a danger that wasn't really there. Suddenly, Annabelle began to cry and Sarah was instantly on her feet, heading towards the crying baby, but this put Alexx on alert again and she started to growl again, dropping into that defensive crouch, her head whipping around. Slowly, Sarah started to walk forwards, her hand outstretched in a calming manner.

"Alexx, Annabelle needs me, she's hungry Alexx, you need to let me take her now" she said.

Her tone was calming and almost authorative, but it did the job and Alexx allowed Sarah to take Annabelle, but the shifter female went with Sarah to the kitchen, standing guard over her while she fed the newborn baby. Sarah was indeed worried, Alexx had never acted like this, sure she was more than a little protective of the infant, but...never to this degree. Will came in and Alexx growled slightly, that is until she saw who it was, then she relaxed somewhat, but she didn't drop her guard. The human male sat down and looked over at Sarah, his gaze dropping to a nursing Annabelle before flickering up to Alexx, who was just staring out the window, as if the truck was right there. Sarah reached over and touched Will's hand, her face one of concern.

"I've never seen her like this Will, what's wrong?" She asked.

Will shook his head and sighed, reaching over, he picked up the handbook and flicked through it, putting it back when he didn't find anything remotely useful in it. He put his head in his hands, it seemed that Ironhide was the cause for all of this, but it wasn't like he could send the 'bot away, not after the big 'bot Optimus had appointed the black mech as the family's guardian. Once again he picked up the handbook, flipping through the pages again, hoping to find something in there to help them with this, but the same as last time...there was nothing. He wished that he could tell her that Ironhide was a sentient robot from another planet and that he was here to protect them, but unfortunately it wasn't up to him whether he was allowed to tell Sarah and Alexx or not, it was up to Boss 'bot and the SecDef, if Alexx kept up like this, then his time back home was going to be tense.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Ironhide)**

When he pulled up outside the Lennox residence, he immediately scanned the area, detecting two human energy signatures and one feline energy signature. He summised that the two human energies were Captain Lennox's mate and sparkling, but another quick scan of the area told him that there were no felines in the area. He growled internally and run another scan, getting the same result, which caused him to run a self diagnostic on all of his systems finding them to be in almost perfect working condition. He cycled his intakes in a deep vent, deciding that he would need to have Ratchet take a look at him whenever he could. He was more than a little confused when Captain Lennox went around to the back of the residence and a scan told Ironhide that the human male was looking up at the roof, the gruff mech scanned the residence again, showing him that a human was sat atop the roof. He listened and watched as Captain Lennox cleared his fuel lines and seemed to wait for a response to the female on top of the building. When the female finally acknowledged Captain Lennox, Ironhide was surprised to see her run across the sloped roof as if it were a flat surface and then for her to climb down a tree at such speed, it made his processors churn in a way he didn't like at all.

When Captain Lennox came back around to the front of the residence with the human female and sparkling in tow, Ironhide couldn't help but notice how different the young human female seemed in the presence of Lennox and his mate. The femme had hazel coloured optics with black coloured keratin rich strands that a quick search revealed as hair, her body seemed lithe and toned, unusual for a human femme her age, according to several sites he searched. He was shocked when a deep, resonating growl made its way to his audio receptors and instantly, he was scanning the area for any Decepticon activity, but when his scans turned up a big, fat nothing, he was hard pressed to decipher where the noise was coming from. However as the noise became more insistent, he did a short wave scan around the residence, finding that the growl was emanating from the human youngling, he was shocked to find out that the feline energy signature seemed to be coming from the young femme in front of him, but what shocked him even more, was that the feline energy signature seemed to have mingled with a human energy signature. How...how could two energy signatures of two completely different species mingle in the same place.

_Impossible._

There was no way! He couldn't think of any reason a human femme would have inhuman DNA, or at least traits of inhuman DNA. The only real solution he could come up with was that she was an experiment. He was startled out of his realisation when the human/feline femme snatched the Lennox sparkling out of the Captain's servos and hurried inside the residence, with the Captain following closely behind. He scanned the abode, listening in on what was happening and his processors froze, the femme appeared to be guarding the sparkling, but what for? Had she sensed something that he hadn't? He did another scan, just to make sure, only to find that everything was completely clear, there was no sign of danger at all. He grumbled to himself, this human/feline femme was something he would need to keep his optic on.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Normal)**

Will and Sarah made their way upstairs, getting themselves ready for bed; but one thing still lingered in Sarah's mind, what was it that caused Alexx to act the way she did as soon as she saw the truck? She looked over to her husband and gazed at him, deep in thought, there was something he wasn't telling her, she was sure of it, and it wasn't something that he wasn't allowed to tell her either. A sigh escaped her lips as she climbed into bed, watching as Will climbed in next to her and snuggled up to her. She tried to put the recent events out of her mind and get some rest, repeating to herself that, at least Annabelle was going to be safe with Alexx in the room with her...for now.

Alexx was stood by the window, gazing down at the truck, her hazel eyes narrowed and a soft growl escaping her lips as she sneered, before closing the curtains and tucking Annabelle in. She walked over to her bed and climbed into it, snuggling down under the covers and closing her eyes. The good thing about cats, was that they were light sleepers, so she knew she would be able to hear if anyone tried to break in or anything and she knew that she would be able to sense something or someone that didn't belong coming up to the house. But right now, the only thing that didn't belong, was the truck, it confused her. It was like...she could sense this energy coming off of it, a deep, dangerous energy and that kicked her protective instincts into overdrive, her sensitive hearing had picked something strange up too, it sounded almost like a heartbeat, but in the form of electrical pulses instead, she was sure it was coming from the truck, all her instincts and all her senses were telling her...that truck was bad news.


	4. Chapter 4

_'Eventually, things quieted down between the humans and the Shifters, but though the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad was disbanded, a few of the members struck out on their own, still carrying the ASTS name with them, unhappy that the King was allowing Shifters to live among humans, as equals and not treating them like the animals they were. They hid, taking down shifters in an inconspicuous manner so that no-one would notice, working their way from genus to genus, species to species, aiming to attempt to label the Shifter as an extinct species. However, when they realised that the Shifters were breeding faster than they were dying, the founder of the ASTS, a man named Peter Hangon decided to put something else into effect. He told his men that from now on, he wanted two unrelated males and two unrelated females of every genus and species, telling them that if humans can't kill Shifters efficiently, then an army of Shifters could do the work. This was immediately acquiesced by the other members and they set out to collect the livestock for their farms._

_Peter intended to breed his army from the Shifters he caught, keeping the strong and killing the weak offspring that were produced, however, he didn't want defective product, so several male and female offspring were kept and nurtured, because they would be able to breed a new generation of soldiers, whether they wanted too or not. See, he was counting on the basic animalian instinct for mating, placing females who were in heat, in a room with one sexually active male ensured that coitus happened and the male would be kept with the female until she conceived. These matings were watched very carefully, as some times it was hard to tell when the female was due in season. Soon, several hundred young shifters were being born, left to received the colostrum from their mothers and then taken so they could start their training. The men of the ASTS realised at the same time, that when a female was no longer nursing her young, she came into season quicker and they could breed her again almost straight away._

_It was horrific, as soon as a female shifter could produce no more offspring, they were killed and their bodies dumped in 3 foot graves outside of the territory of the farm/camp and a new female took up her place. It was a constant circle and only the strong were allowed to reproduce. What's worse, was that the strongest males were decided not by the natural order of things, but by duels that were watched and bet upon by the human men, then the weak males were slaughtered and used to feed the next generation. This happened in secret and is still happening around the world. The humans are oblivious to it, even though it is farming on an incredibly large scale, either they choose to ignore it, or they are too scared of the ASTS to do anything about it.'_

**(Two weeks later)**

Alexx had calmed down around the truck, but only minutely; whenever Annabelle was out crawling around by the imposing black GMC truck, the shifter femme was there, watching like a hawk. A week ago, Will had gone out and had come back with a strange male in tow, claiming him to be one of the guys he fought with when he was doing his tour of duty. The name struck Alexx as odd, Rob Hide. He was a burly man, with a scar going from his left shoulder, down to his right pectoral and he also had several scars on his face too, giving him and even gruffer look. His hair was jet black, the same colour as the truck and his eyes a stunning blue, not that Alexx took any notice, she was more interested in caring for Annabelle and it appeared the male had no interest in talking to her either.

What Alexx also found odd, was that Will, with the help of Rob, was building a large...well if she were to put it into perspective...barn around the back of the house. If she had to guess, she would say that it was at least twenty two foot tall. It struck her as strange, but didn't say anything about it, wanting as little contact as possible with Rob. It was on a hot day, when Annabelle was out in her walker in the front yard, while Sarah was hanging out washing, that Alexx got a strange feeling from the truck, causing her to give it an unseen glare. There was definitely something off about that truck. It wasn't that she was scared of it, it was more along the lines that...she knew that it wasn't a normal truck, she knew that because all other trucks she'd been near, didn't have the strange electric pulse this one had. She couldn't put her finger on it, it was like the truck was alive somehow. She shook her head and watched Annabelle, scowling slightly at how the little girl giggled and cooed as she walked between the little picket fence and towards the truck. This put Alexx on high alert, but more so when Rob came from around the back and glanced down at the little girl, just...staring at her. Alexx growled quietly, causing Rob to look up at her, before he crouched down to get a better look at the infant. All the while, his scanners were trained on Alexx, trying to work out if his systems really were malfunctioning.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Ironhide)**

The human/feline female just watched him as he interacted with the Lennox sparkling, he could tell she was tensing up, even more so when he reached out to touch the human infant. On Cybertron, he never had the chance to father a sparkling, the war had come first before anything else and it just never happened. He was a little put out that he wasn't the only one protecting this family, but then again, at least he won't be the one getting into trouble with Prime if a human got hurt, he could blame it on the overprotective female. Those eyes! He could feel them attempting to bore holes into the back of his holographic skull and he decided that he couldn't take any more of the scrutinisation and he got up, heading back around to where William was.

"Hey, you alright there 'hide?" Will asked.

Ironhide looked at him and grunted, before getting back to work. He wasn't a mech of many words, in fact he barely did any talking with the humans, he didn't understand them and their customs enough. However, if said human was talking about guns, well now...that...was a conversation he could easily fall into. There wasn't anything that Ironhide didn't know about guns, frankly, if he didn't know about it, then it wasn't worth knowing about. His holographic self vented deeply, his processors still trying to work out how the shifter could be, according to his memory banks and the human world wide web, not only were shifters meant to be legends, but said legends told of how Shifters were practically wiped off the face of the planet, that only a few, if any survived. He heard Will clear his throat and looked over at him, to see the human watching him with a smirk on his fleshy lip plates.

"What?" He asked.

Will shook his head and chuckled.

"Nothin, just wondering what you're thinking about, can practically see the cogs whirring in that head of yours" he said.

Ironhide furrowed his brow and glanced at the human.

"I don't see how that would be possible-" he began.

Will held up his hands in a motion that stopped Ironhide from speaking.

"Its a figure of speech" he said.

Ironhide grunted and muttered something about humans and their speech patterns before getting back on with the task at hand.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Normal)**

A few hours passed and Sarah had been slaving away in the kitchen for about twenty minutes, before she came out with three plates of sandwiches, three glasses of her homemade lemonade and a bottle of milk for Annabelle. Will accepted the food and drink eagerly, taking several gulps of the lemonade before thanking his wife and taking the sandwiches. He encouraged Ironhide to do the same, telling him when Sarah had gone, that he would eat the food and drink the lemonade and all the mech had to do was say that it was lovely. Alexx took her sandwiches and climbed up her tree, sitting on the roof to eat them, being sure to keep watching over Sarah and Annabelle, as well as watching over Will. As she sat there, she thought of how she could prove that the truck wasn't a truck, though she had a feeling that Will already knew that. She'd often been out here when Will had come out and he'd been talking to the truck, like it could understand him, it confused her and made her all the more suspicious.

She also had the feeling that Rob knew something about the truck too, because when she would be sat out here, watching the sun set, she would often glimpse him going to the truck and getting into it, but she would rarely see him get back out of it. There was also the fact that when Rob spoke, he didn't make any sense, talking about a person called Prime and Hatchet...he and Will once caught her on the roof and tried to play it off as people they served with in the army, but she knew the scent of a lie, even if Will was trained to be able to lie through his back teeth, she could smell it. She never called him out on it though, because she felt she could trust him. She looked over her shoulder and glanced at the truck, maybe she should try and trust that too...but then again, maybe she should just attempt to get some answers. A small plan formed in the back of her mind and she felt a small smirk adorn her lips. She would find out the truth tonight.

She finished her sandwiches and climbed down the tree, putting the plate in the sink and drinking her lemonade, before going to check on Annabelle and Sarah, the former of which was beginning to get tired after her lunch.

"I'll go put her to bed" she said.

Sarah smiled and thanked her and Alexx plucked Annabelle from the walker and took her into the house, putting the infant in her rocker and beginning to slowly rock her until she fell asleep. Being a cat, she was able to get back out of the house without waking the sleeping baby and handed the baby monitor to Sarah, who was getting ready to go and watch the two men work. Alexx then climbed up into her tree and, making sure that no-one was looking, she shifted to her panther form, before laying down on a thick branch and taking a nap, unaware that Ironhide had just witnessed the whole thing.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Later that night)**

When Will, Sarah and Rob had gone into the house, Alexx shifted back to her human form and climbed down the tree, before looking around and walking up to the truck. She circled it, sniffing the entire time to see if she could maybe smell anything on it, but all she could smell was the distinct scent of Ozone, metal and oil, nothing really out of the ordinary. She gave a growl and stopped at the front of the truck.

"Do you think I'm stupid?" She asked.

No answer. She knew she must've looked stupid, but she didn't care, her arms crossed under her breasts and she narrowed her eyes.

"Cause you know, I'm not stupid at all. I know you're not a truck, I don't know what you are, but I know you definitely aren't a normal truck" she said.

She sensed someone coming out behind her and she froze at the danger in the aura she could feel.

"You ain't all yer cracked up to be either femme" Rob said.

Alexx turned around and looked at him, narrowing her eyes.

"What?" She asked.

The butch male stepped towards her, making her tense in preparation to fight, for she wasn't the type of animal to embrace the flight response.

"I ain't the only one who's hidin somethin'" Rob said again.

Alexx growled and stepped forward, attempting to be threatening.

"Just what do you mean by that? How dare you! You walk into my territory and accuse me of hiding something. You have no right" she hissed.

Ironhide narrowed his holographic eyes at her and met her stance, practically standing chest to...well...throat with her.

"I got every right, I have been stationed here to protect the Lennox family, that means all of the Lennox family, including your sorry aft" he said.

Alexx growled again, not backing down, it wasn't in her nature to back down.

"I was doing perfectly well protecting this family before you came along, you don't need to be here. And I don't need protection, I can take care of myself" she snarled.

The man in front of her narrowed his eyes and stepped forwards once more, trying to intimidate her with his size.

"I doubt that for a nanosecond femme, you have no idea what's out there" he said.

Alexx bared her teeth and her eyes turned to golden brown as she shoved him backwards, surprising Ironhide with her strength.

"And you do?" She asked.

He glared at her and growled a little too.

"More than what you know femme" he replied.

Alexx glared at him and then growled again, before shaking her head.

"Whatever, I don't care. I don't need protecting and nor does my family" she said.

She walked off, leaving the male stood there, glaring after her.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Ironhide)**

His optics watched as she walked into the house and then he let a growl escape from him before his holoform disappeared. As he sat there, he replayed the image just before she had shoved his holoform away and there was no faulting this, her eyes had shifted colour, going from hazel to golden brown. Couple that with the image of her turning into a large, black feline in the tree earlier...his suspicions were correct.

_**:Ironhide to Prime:** _

There was a moment of static on the other side, before the deep baritone of the Autobot leader filled his audios.

_**:Prime, what is it Ironhide?:** _

Ironhide was quiet a second.

_**:It appears the Lennox family is already under protection Prime:** _

A tone was heard across the link.

_**:William has not informed us that he already has a protective detail on his residence:** _

Ironhide sent a tone back.

_**:That is because it appears that the protection has come in the form of a femme Optimus, and not your usual human femme either:** _

Silence.

_**:Decepticon?:** _

Ironhide sent a negative tone.

_**:Negative Prime, I am unsure of what the female is, scans of her show no sign of her being a cybertronian yet I plainly saw her shift into a different form in front of my optics:** _

This time a surprised, yet suspicious tone was sent back.

_**:Are you sure about this Ironhide?:** _

An affirming tone.

_**:Yes Prime, the femme shifted her form in front of me, when she thought I wasn't looking:** _

Silence again before the baritone was back.

_**:Is the femme aware that you know of this event?:** _

Ironhide replayed the argument earlier in his processors, before negating.

_**:No:** _

More silence before speech.

_**:Make sure it stays that way. Is she aware of your true form?:** _

Another negating tone.

_**:Good. Keep an optic on them Ironhide, if the Decepticon find the Lennox family, they may be after this mysterious femme:** _

Ironhide sent an affirming tone before he closed the communications and drifted into an alert recharge.


	5. Chapter 5

**(A few weeks later)**

A few weeks had passed since Alexx and Ironhide had talked and things had quietened down between them, albeit by only a small margin. She was still tensing up when in his presence, a sure sign that he wasn't welcome in her territory or near to her family, but it was clear that he had a job to do and he was going to do it regardless of whether she wanted him to or not. Also in the few weeks, the large barn that Ironhide and Will had been building had been completed and now the gruff mech had a place where he could transform and not be seen by Sarah or Alexx, which was good for him. Everything seemed to be going well, there were no signs of Decepticon activity near to where the Lennox family were and the Autobots were keeping their optics on the remaining Decepticons that had hid themselves around the globe. Currently, Will and Optimus were in talks with the government to start up an organisation called the Non-Biological Extra-terrestrial Species Treaty or NEST for short, which would give the Autobots and the humans a chance to work together to hunt down the remaining Decepticons for peace of mind and processor.

It was around Five am when Alexx came out of the house and used the tree to climb up onto the roof to watch the sunrise as she usually did, her eyes though weren't fixed on the horizon they were instead flicking between the horizon and the large barn that was at the back of the house. It was true that cats were too curious for their own good and being a feline shifter, she knew that all too well, her curiosity was peaked every time she saw Rob drive that black truck into the barn and she could hear mechanical scraping sounds as well as the sound of Rob grunting, or at least it  _sounded_  like Rob, but she usually shook it off and did what she was doing. Today though, she made the promise to herself that she would see what was inside that barn when Rob took the truck into it, the truck still irked her and she couldn't get rid of the feeling that maybe the truck wasn't a truck after all. But there wasn't anything else that the truck could be, though it seemed that Will knew the truck's secret and he didn't seem to mind it either. Sighing and shaking her head, the feline shifter watched the sun climb high into the sky before she went back into the house to sort things out for the family that were just waking up. Will was the first one down the stairs, having woken up with the sun and he smiled at her.

"Morning Alexx" he said.

She smiled at him and handed him a cup of coffee that she had prepared, the man graciously accepted the mug and took a sip, groaning at the taste of it and shivering with the small buzz that sip gave him.

"You always know how I like my coffee" he stated.

This made Alexx laugh and she leaned on the counter, looking at him.

"Well, it isn't hard when I'm usually up to see you making your own drink. You like two heaped teaspoons of coffee and three teaspoons of sugar in the morning, but during the day the coffee and sugar are halved, you prefer one teaspoon of coffee and one and a half teaspoons of sugar, logical reason would point to the fact that a strong and sweet coffee in the morning gives you the desired caffeine buzz that you need to wake up" she said.

Will gave her a look and then waved his hand and shook his head.

"It's too early in the morning to even  _try_ to understand what you just said" he said.

Again Alexx laughed and then Sarah came down the stairs with Annabelle in her arms and the feline shifter held out another cup of coffee and put a warm bottle of milk on the counter as Sarah handed Annabelle to Alexx and took her coffee, watching as the shifter picked up the bottle and popped the lid off with one hand before feeding it to Annabelle. Sarah had learned early on that Alexx could tell that the milk was the correct temperature without testing it on her hand and could just feed it to Annabelle. When she'd first done it, Sarah had warned her that feeding milk that was too hot to a baby was dangerous and that had been when Alexx had explained to her that she could easily tell what the temperature of the milk was without testing it.

"Did you two sleep well?" Alexx asked.

Both Sarah and Will nodded as they drank their coffee, making the shifter female smile. She was used to the fact that neither of them spoke until they'd had their first coffee of the morning and then they would talk, so she just sat down at the table, with Annabelle in the crook of one arm and the bottle in her other hand. Once the child had finished the bottle, Alexx put a towel over her shoulder and began to rub the infant's back to get her to burp; this was when Rob chose his moment to enter the house. Alexx ignored him, even as he came to stand in the kitchen and Sarah offered him a drink, which he declined, keeping his eyes on how Alexx was treating Annabelle. The shifter looked at him and narrowed her eyes.

"What?" She asked.

Rob just glared at her before looking away and concentrating on Will.

"The boss would like to speak with you William, we should be en route as soon as possible" he said.

Alexx growled and gave him a glare.

"At least let the man wake up before you start dragging him off gallivanting around" she hissed.

Rob once again just glared at her before looking at Will to get his confirmation of the matter. When Will nodded and put his coffee cup down, he walked out of the kitchen and back upstairs to get showered, shaved and changed while Sarah decided that she would get on with some housework while Alexx was looking after the baby. Alexx glared at Rob and then set Annabelle on the table, taking the towel off of her shoulder and holding it under Annabelle's chin while still rubbing her back, until Annabelle spewed up a little and then Alexx wiped her mouth off with the towel and chuckled it to the washing, which just so happened to be where Rob was standing. The soiled towel hit his leg and he glared at Alexx once again.

"Do you mind?" He asked.

Alexx looked at him and then looked at the towel and then looked at him again.

"Not my fault if you choose a stupid place to stand" she replied.

She then got up with the baby and walked up the stairs, picking out a nice clothing set for Annabelle to wear before getting a change of diaper and walking back down the stairs. Seeing as Will was in the shower, there was no chance of bathing Annabelle in the bathroom, so she walked into the kitchen and put the stuff on the table. She then walked over to the sink and put the plug in, filling it up half way with hot water and then filling the rest up with cold water, before turning the taps off, grabbing the baby changing mat and putting it on the counter next to the sink and placing Annabelle on it. With that done, Alexx began to strip Annabelle, first taking off her onesie and then her diaper, which she folded up and put in the bin, before she set Annabelle in the sink, picking up the jug and beginning to wash the baby.

Once that was done, Alexx let the water out of the sink before she plucked a nice, fluffy bath towel from the clean laundry and wrapped it around Annabelle. She then lifted the infant out of the sink and put her onto the baby changing mat, beginning to dry her. Once that was done, Alexx started to dress Annabelle, first putting her diaper on, then putting her maroon leggings on, then putting her vest on and then putting on her little denim dress. With that done, she took Annabelle into the lounge and placed her in her walker, just as Sarah had finished cleaning the lounge and Will came walking down the stairs.

"Are you ready 'hide?" He asked.

The other male made a show of walking out of the kitchen and nodding at Will, before walking out of the front door and closing it. Will shook his head and walked up to Sarah, kissing her.

"I'll be back soon" he said.

Sarah nodded and watched as Will kissed Annabelle on the head and did the same with Alexx before walking out of the door, the engine of the truck was then heard starting up and the crackle of gravel as they pulled out of the drive.

"I'm gonna go up for a shower, are you alright looking after Annabelle for a bit longer?" Sarah asked.

Alexx looked away from the door and smiled, nodding at her adoptive mother.

"Sure, I don't mind" she said.

Sarah thanked her and hurried up the stairs to take a nice shower and get changed.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Ironhide and Will)**

As they were diving along the road to the airstrip, Ironhide was tempted to ask about Alexx, but instead decided to leave it as he knew Optimus would probably want to ask the same question and if he had learned one thing about humans in his time posted with the Lennox family is that, they didn't like repeating themselves. So it would make sense that if Optimus did ask about the strange female living with him, Will would tell Optimus which would undoubtedly lead to Ironhide knowing about the femme too. As they came up to the airstrip, the C-17 was there to pick them up and Ironhide drove right into the back of the aircraft, shutting off his engine and activating his holoform so he could speak with Will.

"Did you recharge sufficiently William?" He asked.

Will looked at him and nodded smiling.

"Yeah, I slept fine 'hide. What is it Optimus wants to talk to me about?" He asked.

Ironhide faltered for a minute, deciding whether or not he should tell Will about what Optimus wanted to talk about. He vented his intakes and looked at his charge.

"Optimus is aware that there is a being in your residence who may possess a threat to you, your mate and your sparkling" he said.

Will gave him a look and thought about what Ironhide had just said before his eyes opened wide and he chuckled.

"Who Alexx? She's not a threat, she's my daughter" he said.

Ironhide rumbled his engines and Will felt tingly all over, but before he could ask what it was, Ironhide began to speak again.

"Your DNA does not match hers William. Why are you lying to me?" He asked.

Will glared at the holoform.

"I'm not lying Ironhide, Alexx is my daughter. She doesn't have to be blood related to be my daughter, its what we humans call, non-biological daughter. See, Annabelle is my biological daughter, meaning she has my DNA and Sarah's DNA, but because Alexx doesn't share our DNA it doesn't mean she's not our daughter" he explained.

Ironhide processed this new information and nodded. He understood now that while Alexx didn't share the Lennox mate's DNA, she was still considered as their sparkling.

"You and your mate would raise another bonded's sparkling?" He asked.

Will nodded and smiled.

"Well, we really didn't have a choice Ironhide, it was either take her in as our own or leave her to die and Sarah's caring nature and maternal instinct wouldn't let her do that" he replied.

Ironhide nodded in understanding. Though it was heard of on Cybertron, a bonded pair taking in the sparkling of a pair who had been offlined and raising said sparkling as their own, it wasn't really noticed all that much until the war when several mechs and femmes were offlined, leaving sparklings without their creators. He vented his intakes again and kept quiet for the rest of the journey.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Hoover Dam Nevada. Autobot base of Operations)**

When Ironhide and Will arrived at the Autobot base in Nevada, the gruff mech drove the human into the base and stopped, opening his door for Will to get out before transforming when he was sure that Will was clear. When this was done, Ironhide lowered his servo so Will could climb on and once he had, the mech walked over to where Optimus was.

"Optimus" he said.

The large mech turned around and nodded his helm in greeting to the black mech before looking down to Will.

"Ah, Major Lennox, it is good to see you" he said.

Will nodded up at the mech.

"You too Optimus. What's this I hear you want to talk to me about my daughter?" He asked.

Optimus' optics shone brighter for a second before going back to their usual brightness.

"Indeed, Ironhide has informed me that you have an unidentified being living in your residence, who may pose a threat to you, your mate and your sparkling. The news has unsettled me somewhat" he answered.

Will sighed and shook his head.

"Okay, first thing's first, Alexx isn't a threat, she's my daughter" he said.

Optimus went to say something but Will held his hand up.

"Yes, I know her DNA doesn't match mine, she's adopted. Second of all, she isn't an  _'unidentified being'_ she's a...well...she's a shifter" he said.

Optimus' optics dimmed and Will guessed that he was looking up the term 'shifter'. As soon as Optimus' optics came back to their normal brightness, he looked down at the human.

"Your World Wide Web does not have much information on these so called 'shifters', would you care to elaborate?" He asked.

Will sighed and started to tell Optimus about what he'd read in the handbook and in the letter that Alexx's true parents had left with her on the night that Sarah had found her. He told them how Alexx was only around nineteen months old and how she already looked to be in her mid teens and about how fast her healing ability was. Hearing this, Ratchet transformed and joined in on the conversation.

"Impossible, no being can heal that fast" he said.

Will turned and looked at the medic.

"Well she did. She cut her hand, quite deep too and Sarah put some butterfly stitches, which are little uh...strips of tape that help bring the two sides of the wound together so it can heal better, and she wrapped it in a bandage. By the next afternoon or morning, whichever, the wound was nothing but a pink scar on her palm" he explained.

Ratchet and Optimus looked at each other and then they both looked at Will.

"And you say that she is very protective of your sparkling?" Optimus asked.

Will nodded and then Ironhide interjected.

"When I first arrived at the Lennox residence, the femme took the sparkling out of William's servos and appeared to be guarding her. I don't know what provoked such a response, I scanned the area and it was clean" he said.

Will took his chance to speak then.

"That was because of you Ironhide. Somehow she was able to sense that Ironhide wasn't a truck and not knowing about you guys and having never seen you before, she perceived you as a threat" he explained.

Ratchet snorted.

"That's preposterous, while Ironhide may be a lughead, he's not a threat to you or your family, he is your guardian" he said.

Will nodded.

"I know, but she didn't know that and you guys don't want your secret out, so I couldn't tell her or Sarah that you weren't a threat" he said.

Optimus nodded in understanding, not liking how this femme seemed to be able to shift her form into that of a large, wild animal at will. However, Will seemed to trust her, and he trusted Will.

"I am not happy about this turn of events, however if you have complete trust in this shifter, I will trust your judgement" he said.

Will nodded and they talked about some other things before Will and Ironhide left the base and made their way back to the airstrip.

"You alright now Ironhide?" He asked.

The mech rumbled.

"I understand that Alexx is merely trying to protect you and your family, but I am unsettled. We have never come across shifters before and to learn that there is one living with those I have a duty to protect..." He began.

Will smiled.

"Don't worry Ironhide, she doesn't mean you any harm, she's just over protective is all" he stated.

Ironhide rumbled again before he drove into the cargo hold of the plane.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Normal/That night)**

Things got back to normal when Ironhide and Will returned home, the dinner was served and the washing up was done and so were the baths, before Alexx made her way onto the roof to watch the sunset. As she did, she noticed Rob driving that truck into the barn again and she slowly climbed down the tree. Creeping over to the large brown barn she heard the scraping of metal and a groan, she opened the door slightly, glad that the rivets were new and didn't squeak. Poking her head into the barn, her protective instincts were put on full alert when she saw a large black robot stood there, its form barely able to be seen by human eyes, but she saw it perfectly. The robot was tall, stocky and had lumps on its arms and its eyes seemed to glow a bright blue, however she wasn't focussing on that,she was focussing on the fact that there was a robot in the barn and her protective instincts kicked in. A growl rose in her chest and she flung the door open, baring her teeth and snarling at the large robotic form.

Ironhide heard the growl and then the snarl and turned to face the female, his weapons drawn and powered up. When he saw that it was just Alexx, he lowered his weapons, before noticing the look on her face and the heat in her eyes. She continued to growl at him, staying where she was and slowly dropping into a defensive crouch.

"Who are you and what do you want?" She growled.

Ironhide was about to retort but he huffed instead.

"I don't have to answer that femme" he said.

Alexx either didn't recognise the voice, or she was too preoccupied with trying to protect her family.

"Answer me  _robot_ " she hissed.

Ironhide looked down at her and smirked.

"No" he said.

Alexx growled more and Ironhide smirked more before the femme looked around.

"Where is Rob and that demon truck?" She asked.

Ironhide narrowed his optics at being called a demon truck and his cannons whirred.

"I am  _not_  a demon truck" he growled.

Alexx hissed.

"I wasn't talking about you, you overgrown trash can, where is Rob?" She asked.

Ironhide growled.

"He's right here" he replied.

Again Alexx hissed.

"Where?" She demanded.

Ironhide growled.

"You're lookin at him" He stated.

Alexx growled.

"No, Rob Hide is a cock-sure human who enjoys pissing me off, not some freakish black robot so I'll ask again...where...is...Rob Hide?" She asked.

Ironhide growled and powered up his weapons.

"For the love of Primus human, Rob Hide is not real" he said.

Alexx growled.

"Yes he is, I saw him with my own two eyes" she said.

Ironhide growled and clenched his fists.

"No you glitched femme, Rob Hide is a holographic form that I use to blend in with the humans" he explained.

Alexx growled.

"So what do you want? Using a holographic form to get close to my family and then what?" She asked.

Ironhide turned around and silently prayed for Primus to give him strength, before he turned back to Alexx.

"Ask William, I do not have the patience to explain this to you" he said.

He then turned around, a sign that he was done talking. Alexx growled and walked out of the barn, heading into the house. She would talk to Will in the morning.


	6. Chapter 6

**(The next morning)**

Alexx was on the roof just staring at the barn where she'd seen that robot last night. She sighed and shook her head, closing her eyes she brought her knees up to her chest and put her head on them. The fact that Will obviously knew about that thing in the barn and didn't tell her made her upset, she thought he trusted her. A sigh escaped her mouth as she heard the floor boards creaking and she climbed down her tree, glimpsing into the house to see that it was Will getting up. She sighed again and climbed the rest of the way down the tree and grabbed the morning paper before she walked into the house. As soon as he came down the stairs she smiled at him and went into the kitchen to make his coffee. Once done, she turned around and gave him the drink before leaning against the counter, she thought about how to approach the subject of the giant black robot.

She chewed the inside of her lip as she thought about what she was gonna say, she wasn't usually this tongue tied, but this wasn't any normal matter. She took a deep breath in and let it out in a sigh before she looked at Will.

"Can I talk to you Will?" She asked.

The man looked up from the paper he was reading and raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to speak. He watched as she came and sat down opposite him and spread her arms out on the table.

"So...I noticed something last night..." She began.

Will's eyes went wide and his mouth flapped about, but Alexx put her hand up and stopped him from saying anything.

"I don't blame you for not telling me, I mean...its kinda a big thing, but I guess its something that has to be kept a secret right?" She asked.

By this time Will was blushing and his mouth was still flapping like a fish out of water. Before he cleared his throat and put his cup down on the table, crossing his arms a little before uncrossing them and fidgeting a little.

"Alexx, you know its completely natural right?" He questioned.

The shifter femme opened her mouth to speak, but then his words sunk in and she made a face at him.

"Huh?" She asked.

Will looked at her with a serious face.

"What Sarah and I do is completely natural, its the way Annabelle was created, one day you'll go through it yourself" he said.

By this time, Alexx was confused even more.

"What the duck are you on about Will?" She asked.

Will furrowed his brow a little.

"Sex. Its completely natural and one day you'll have it too" he replied.

The way he said that and the way he obviously didn't know what she'd been talking about made her crack up laughing. Will raised an eyebrow again and then he narrowed his eyes.

"What's so funny?" He asked.

Alexx laughed even harder, before managing to calm herself down.

"Oh nothing, except the fact that...you haven't got an  _iota_  about what I'm talking about" she said.

Will's eyes opened so wide that Alexx thought they were going to pop out of his head. But then she shook her head.

"I wasn't talking about sex Will, I know how babies are made, I know about sex and how pleasurable it is for humans, but how  _excruciatingly_  painful it is for cats...but I was  _talking_  about the big ass robot that we got living in our barn" she stated.

She looked at her adoptive father and burst into I more laughter as she looked at his face. His eyes were wide, his mouth was slightly open and his entire face was red down to the neck. He cleared his throat and picked up his cup of coffee.

"It is too early in the morning to be talking about this with you" he said.

Alexx nodded.

"So I'll blame your poor attempt at 'the talk' on you not being awake fully yet then shall I?" She asked.

Will nodded.

"Please do. Now, I'm going to drink my coffee and go up for a shower, then I'm gonna make some calls" he said.

The shifter femme nodded again and then cocked an eyebrow.

"And then we'll talk about the big ass robot that we got living in our barn right?" She pushed.

Will just gave her a look.

"Right" he said.

He then picked up his cup of coffee and continued to drink it, trying to ignore the snickers that were coming from his adopted daughter.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Half an hour later/Will)**

After drinking his coffee, Will had gone upstairs and got into the shower. He couldn't believe what he'd said to Alexx, it was every parents nightmare to be asked the question about sex...well...maybe not every parent's nightmare, but it was definitely his nightmare and to find out that she hadn't even been talking about sex, well that just put the icing on the cake. However, right now, that wasn't what concerned him, what had him in a tiffle with his own mind, was the fact that Alexx knew about Ironhide.

"Damned it!" He hissed.

He had hoped to keep the mech from her for as long as possible, at least until he was needed and she found out by watching him save her and the family, but to find out by...he thought about it...he didn't even know how she'd found out about Ironhide...he'd have to ask her...hopefully when he could face her without blushing as red as a tomato. He sighed as he washed his face and got out of the shower, if he was going to tell Alexx about Ironhide, he may as well tell her about the rest of the mechs...if he thought about it...it would be better to just show her the mechs, but to do that he'd need to make a few calls.

Once he was dressed, he pulled out his phone and sighed. Optimus could be contacted via phone now and talking to him over the phone, was almost as nerve wracking as talking to him face to face. He sighed and dialled the number. As soon as the big mech answered, Will told him about Alexx finding out about Ironhide and he explained that if he was going to tell the girl about Ironhide, he may as well kill two birds with one stone and tell her about the others too. The big mech had been reluctant, but he had agreed and had said that he would talk to the Defense Secretary about the situation and inform Ironhide of the result. Will thanked him and then hung up, twirling the phone in his hands as he sat on the bottom of the bed, when he heard Annabelle start to cry. He felt Sarah move and heard a small groan, signalling that she was waking up.

"Morning baby" she said.

Will turned to her and smiled, getting up off of the bed and walking around to her, kissing her on the lips and then pulling away, kissing the back of her knuckles.

"You go and get yourself sorted, I'll take care of Belle" he said.

Sarah nodded and got out of bed, slipping her nightgown on and heading to the bathroom. Will took a deep breath in and went into Annabelle's room, picking the crying baby up and walking down stairs with her, heading into the kitchen to sort out the baby bottle, only to have said bottle thrust into his hand.

"I heard her crying" Alexx said.

Will nodded and sat down, putting Annabelle sat in his lap and holding the bottle up to her mouth. The infant greedily suckled on the nipple of the teat and Alexx smiled.

"Aren't you glad you have a shifter in the house?" She asked.

The man looked up at her and gave her a confused look, which made her chuckle.

"I had the bottle made as soon as I heard the first noises of her beginning to cry" she elaborated.

Will nodded and then smiled, before Rob appeared in the door way.

"Optimus said that Defense Secretary Keller has approved of Alexx meeting the others" he said.

The military man turned towards the holographic form and nodded, before motioning to Annabelle.

"Kinda busy at the minute 'Hide, but we'll go as soon as I'm done here" he stated.

Rob nodded and gave Alexx a slight glare before disappearing. Alexx just glared at the place he'd just been and then she snorted.

"Damned toaster" she muttered.

Unfortunately Will heard that and he glared at her.

"Be nice Alexx, that  _toaster_ is my guardian" he chided.

The shifter looked at him and raised an eyebrow, before shaking her head.

"What did it mean when it said that Defense Secretary keller has approved of Alexx meeting the others...what others?" She asked.

Will just looked at her before he continued to feed Annabelle.

"You'll find out soon alright Alexx, just...don't worry about it for now" he said.

The shifter femme sighed and started to clean up the top where she'd spilled some of the baby formula.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Later that morning)**

After Will had finished feeding Annabelle, he'd cleaned up and walked out of the house with Alexx following him. He got into Ironhide, but she was apprehensive about doing so. Will sighed and looked at her.

"Come on Alexx, he's not gonna bite" he said.

Alexx growled and then got into the truck, glaring at the dashboard as she sat in the seat and crossed her arms.

"Can you tell me where we're going please?" She asked.

Will looked at her and smiled a little.

"I can't, but...you'll find out when we get there" he replied.

Alexx sighed and slumped a little in the seat, playing the rebellious teenager for all it was worth. But then again, she  _was_  a teenager by the standards of Jaguars...so it was right. They drove for a while, before they got on a plane and headed towards Mission City, of course the base wasn't there, but it was the only airport that was closest to the Hoover Dam base. Once they got on the plane, Alexx was immediately out of the front seat and in the back seat, where she proceeded to wind Ironhide up, by kicking the back of the seat she'd just vacated. This caused Ironhide to emit low growls that gradually got louder and louder until they were practically vibrating the entire truck.

"Alexx, stop doing that" Will said.

The teen looked at him and gave him an innocent look.

"Stop what?" She asked.

Will turned and glared at her, before raising an eyebrow.

"I know what you're doing Alexx, stop kicking the back of the chair" he replied.

Alexx sighed and gave the back of the chair one last kick, before letting her legs drop to the floor.

"Are we there yet?" She asked.

Will groaned and put his head in his hands, the one thing he wasn't looking forward to was the  _'Are we there yet'_ thing that kids and teenagers sometimes if not always did. It was going to get annoying for more than just him.

"No Alexx, we have about a half an hour flight" he said.

The black haired girl smirked a little and then opened her mouth, but Will held up a finger.

"Say 'Are we there yet' once more and I'll let Ironhide use you for target practice" he warned.

At the sound of this, Alexx shut her mouth and sat in the back seat pouting, before she perked up and opened the back door, climbing out of the truck and going to sit on one of the benches. Will narrowed his eyes at her and motioned for her to get back into the truck, but she shook her head and stayed where she was. The man narrowed his eyes even more, this was going to be a long half hour.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Half an hour later)**

Finally the plane landed and Ironhide, Will and Alexx were on their way to the Hoover Dam base that the Autobots were currently occupying until they could get a bigger base. With talks about a new strike team to hunt down and disable the remaining Decepticons, there was also talk of a new base in Diego Garcia, but nothing was concrete as of yet. As Will effectively  _'drove'_ towards the base, he could see Alexx wasn't fidgeting anymore and he turned around to see her just sat there, looking out of the window. From her posture he could tell that she was a little nervous about what was going on and he reached back to put a hand on her knee.

"You'll be alright" he said.

She looked at him and smiled a little, she might act tough, but even the toughest of animals gets scared sometimes. She sighed and pulled her knees up to her chest as they drove over the bridge towards the Hoover Dam, the place was huge, easily able to house several giant robots, that was why they made this their base for the time being. As they came to a gate, the soldier on guard checked Will's pass and nodded to let them through, but not before he gave Will a visitors pass to give to Alexx, she'd need it to avoid being kicked off the base.

Ironhide drove into the base and Alexx's jaw went slack at the sheer size of the place, not to mention the gorgeous vehicles that seemed to be parked in a line...well, there were only two vehicles, but that was enough. However, she got the same feeling from them that she did from the truck she was in and she swallowed a growl. When Ironhide stopped, Will and Alexx got out and Will took the girl over to the large Peterbilt.

"Right Alexx, I want you to meet Optimus Prime" he said.

As he said this, the Peterbilt began to transform into a giant forty foot tall robot. Alexx stepped back a little, hissing in fright, before Will calmed her down.

"Its alright, he won't hurt us" he said.

Alexx still glared up at the robot, a small growl escaping her. Will then pointed to the Hummer.

"That's Ratchet" he said.

The Hummer then transformed into a twenty-two foot robot and Alexx growled even louder at this, pulling away from Will and hissing. Then the truck behind her started to transform and she turned around and emitted a loud warning growl followed by a hiss.

"And that's Ironhide" Will said.

Alexx looked between all the robots and growled as she did, slowly backing away from all of them and bolting out of a door. Will called her back, but she kept running, prompting the man to follow her.

"Alexx!" He called.

However, she'd already shifted and hidden behind a pile of boxes. Will stopped and sighed, rubbing his face as he walked back into the main part of the base.

"That went well" Ironhide said.

Will glared up at him and sighed.

"It could've gone better. For all the tough talk she put on, I guess she really is a scaredy cat" he said.

Optimus looked down at the human and cycled his intakes.

"William, all creatures feel fear, perhaps it is the fact that you brought her off her own territory" he suggested.

Will looked up at the big bot and sighed again.

"I guess you're right. Now we need to wait until she decides she can come back out" he said.

Optimus rumbled and looked in the direction Alexx had gone.


	7. Chapter 7

**(A few weeks later)**

Alexx had now calmed down around the Autobots, in the sense that she was no longer hissing and growling at them every time they transformed, instead she was agitated around them for a different reason. In the last week, Alexx had experienced her first ever heat and ferocity in which she experienced it damn near scared her, she was flirting with the soldiers and the mechs at every chance she could, even if she didn't mean too. Of course, some of the soldiers readily welcomed her advances whether they were intentional or not, and who could blame them, a beautiful young woman flirting with them, most of which were single and sexually depraved. However, as soon as Will worked out what was happening, he told the men to back off, warning them that Alexx was his daughter and under the protection of Ironhide too. That was enough to warn most of them off, but one man still went after her, despite his marriage to a wonderful woman and his two beautiful daughters, he wanted to have a taste of the shifter femme.

Currently, Alexx was in the mess hall nursing a cup of tea when the man came in and sat next to her with a cup of coffee. He nudged her a little and smiled at her, his hand going under the table and squeezing her knee, before it began to move upwards, causing her to shiver in arousal. When his hand got close to the apex of her thighs, Alexx got up and walked outside leaving the man there. After a few minutes, the man got up and followed her outside to find her leaning against the wall in a seductive pose, he walked up to her and started nibbling at her neck.

"If your dad catches us, we'll be in trouble" he whispered.

Alexx leaned her head to the side to give him better access to her neck while she moved her knee to his crotch and rubbed her hands up his arms, down his sides and up his back and into his hair.

"We'd best not get caught then" she said.

The man pulled back and grinned at her, before he quickly began to undo pants and Alexx pushed her pants to her knees, turning around, pressing her hands against the wall and bending over, exposing her already dripping womanhood to him. Stepping up to her, the man tested how wet she was before he pushed himself into her, breaching her hymen as he did. He up a slow and steady rhythm that gradually sped up until she came around him, turning her head towards him.

"Pull out before you finish" she said.

The man kept thrusting, with no intention of pulling out, he knew that he had every intention of finishing inside her, knowing it could cause her to become pregnant. Unlucky for him, Alexx realised what he was doing and stomped on his foot, making him cry out and pull away from her, holding his foot.

"You bitch!" He groaned.

Alexx pulled her pants up and turned to face him. He looked at her and pushed her against the wall, starting to jerk off in front of her, intent on leaving his mark on her. However, she pushed him away just as he came.

"I told you to pull out!" She hissed.

The man came up to her again, still stroking his manhood and fumbling with her jeans button and zip, however, Alexx pushed him away, grabbed his shoulders, pushed him against the wall and grabbed his balls, twisting and pulling.

"Stay away from me you bastard!" She growled.

Then she gave a sharp twist of his balls and walked off into the base, leaving him on his knees. She walked back into the mess hall and grabbed a bottle of water, telling the guy that her father would pay for it, then she walked outside the base again, walking away from the man and over to one of the residential buildings that was on the grounds and using a tree to get onto the roof. Sighing, she opened the bottle of water and took a large sip of it before closing it up again and staring out to the horizon, tears accumulating in her eyes as she did. After a few minutes, she heard the hissing of hydraulics and turned to see Ironhide walking towards her, she sighed and looked away from him, not needing his in your face attitude right now. But, as he came up to her, he didn't say a word and out of the corner of her eye, she saw him look towards the horizon himself and she realised that he was waiting for her to say something. But what could she say? She knew she'd been an idiot by letting that man be her first, but not doing anything had hurt her. Once again she sighed and briefly turned her head towards the large black mech before she looked back to the horizon.

"I was stupid" she muttered.

Ironhide turned his head towards her briefly, before he too looked back to the horizon. He didn't really know what to say, he could tell by her posture that she was upset about what she'd done and it didn't take a genius to know exactly what she'd done. He cycled his intakes and once again turned his head towards her, taking in everything about her, he was glad that out here, he didn't have to put up with the scent of her pheromones invading his scent receptors, so being near her was easier and he wasn't trying to fight his own body. He looked back to the horizon and cycled his intakes again.

"You needed it" he stated.

Alexx turned her head towards him and raised an eyebrow, was he trying to be sympathetic towards her? She snorted and turned her head back towards the horizon, wishing she could be at the beach so she could watch the sun set into the ocean and hopefully see the green flash. She put her bottle down next to her and pulled her knees up to her chest, resting her head on them.

"Need it or not, I was stupid to let him take the one thing that I valued above everything else" she said.

Ironhide huffed and turned his head towards her.

"You regret it?" He asked.

Alexx turned her head towards him, still resting it on her knees and she nodded, before turning so that her chin was back on her knees.

"Yeah, I regret it" she replied.

Ironhide rumbled a little and turned his whole body towards her, staring at her.

"We all do things we regret Alexx, ya just gotta put it behind ya and move on" he reasoned.

Alexx once again turned her head towards him and raised an eyebrow as best she could, before lifting her head off of her knees.

"How'm I supposed to do that when the guy is on the base all the time?" She questioned.

Ironhide raised an optic ridge and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Ignore him" he said.

The shifter narrowed her eyes and then shook her head.

"I can't do that, he's liable to tell Will about what happened" she whispered.

The gruff mech shrugged and gazed at her.

"Then ya tell Will yourself and then ignore the guy. That way Will can keep an optic on him" he reasoned.

Alexx snorted and looked away from the black mech.

"You know what Will's like when it comes to me he's overprotective because of me being a shifter and people being out to get me because of that. Plus he'll be angry at me" she said.

Ironhide cycled his intakes.

"Look, I'm no good at this kinda stuff, but what I can tell ya is that, Will is gonna be more angry if ya  _don't_ tell him, than if ya tell him. Plus, he's your mech creator, he has a right to worry about ya" he said.

Alexx looked at him and shook her head.

"No he doesn't and no he's not. He's my adoptive father, there is nothing that makes me his daughter apart from the fact that when I was a baby, Sarah found me on their doorstep and took me in because my real parents abandoned me" she said.

Ironhide growled and moved himself so that he was right in front of her, glaring at her with hard optics.

"From what Will has told us, your parents had no choice but to leave you on the doorstep of Sarah Lennox's residence, to give you a chance at living. Do you not think that if they could have looked after you and raised you themselves they would have done it?" He asked.

Alexx looked at him and furrowed her brow.

"How do you know that?" She questioned.

Ironhide rubbed his servo down his faceplates and looked at her.

"Will has told us about you and he has told us the story that Sarah Lennox told him" he replied.

The shifter sighed and shook her head, putting her chin back onto her knees and staring at his chest.

"It still makes no difference, he's not my biological father and I'm not his biological daughter. I'm just a spare part in the family" she said.

Ironhide shook his head and put his servos on his hip struts.

"And that makes no difference either Alexx, he loves you as if he were your mech creator. Why else would he have accepted you into his family?" He asked.

Alexx looked at him and shrugged.

"Because Sarah wasn't going to leave me outside in the cold" she stated.

Ironhide groaned and pinched his nasal ridge looking away from her. He was starting to lose his patience and decided that the truth was going to be better for her, whether she wanted to hear it or not. He looked up a few things, before he began to speak.

"Oh for the love of Primus...are your audio processing units failing?" He asked.

Alexx looked at him and shook her head.

"No wh-" she began.

Ironhide cut her off.

"Because you obviously cannot hear yourself. Stop blaming others for your fragging problems, so what you are not the same as William, Sarah and Annabelle Lennox, who gives a frag? Certainly not Will, he has raised you with the help of Sarah Lennox, as if you were his own and because you made a mistake by interfacing with a bonded male, you are doubting his care for you. Your problems are your own Alexx Lennox, others do not factor into them, they are yours and yours alone and you have to deal with them, blaming others will not make them go away. The fact that you are out here, wallowing in your self pity is annoying and it clearly shows that you are a coward. So you made a mistake, everybody makes them pit, even I have made some mistakes, but I did not allow them to rule me as you are doing, fragging get over it Alexx and get down there and deal with it. So Will may be angry with you, deal with it, it is your fault and you alone can make it right" he said.

Alexx just stared at him throughout his charade and when he was finished she just gave him a shocked and clearly upset look. She hadn't been expecting him to go off on one and hearing all that he said hurt her. However, it was clear that he wasn't finished when he took another breath.

"Femmes like you make me want to purge my tanks. You have a loving family, whether or not they are your biological family, but you...to use a human turn of phrase...throw it all back in their faces. Own up to your mistakes, ignoring them won't make them go away, it'll just make them worse, if you want to blame someone, then blame yourself" he finished.

Again, Alexx just looked at him, before she lowered her head and felt the sting of tears come to her eyes. She got up and climbed down the tree, hurrying into the base and finding a corner where she could release her emotions, sitting there and crying for a good ten minutes before she mentally reviewed what Ironhide had said, realising that he was right, she was blaming everyone for her problems except from the right person...herself. She composed herself and took a deep breath and walked out of the corner, heading over to where Will was.

"Will, can I talk to you?" She asked.

The man looked at her and nodded, dismissing the soldier he was talking to before turning towards his adopted daughter.

"What's up Alexx?" He questioned.

Alexx took a deep breath and began to tell him what had happened and by the end of it, she could see that Will wasn't very happy about what he'd heard.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

Confusion made her brow furrow and she looked at him.

"You're not angry at me" she inquired.

Will raised an eyebrow.

"I'll be angry later, right now I wanna know if he hurt you" he replied.

Alexx shook her head and looked down and he nodded giving a bit of a sigh.

"Good" he said.

The shifter again furrowed her brow and looked up at him.

"That's it?" She asked.

Will shrugged and looked at her.

"You're old enough to make your own decisions Alexx, according to the handbook, by shifter standards, you're an adult now. If you make the wrong decisions, you have to deal with them on your own. I'm not always gonna be here to do it for you" he replied.

Again Alexx felt the sting of the truth settle in her chest and a lump rise in her throat. He was right, she was an adult by shifter standards and she would have to deal with her own mistakes.

"I'll deal with Sergeant Hollier, because he actively disobeyed a direct order" Will said.

Alexx nodded and then turned away, heading out of the base again and into the trees where she shifted and ran off. She needed time to herself, loads of things were running through her mind and if she stayed around the base, she knew that she'd end up hurting somebody. As she ran, everything became blurry, all of the colours blurred into one and a sharp pain ripped through her head, making her stop and yowl in pain. She shifted and the yowl turned into an agonised scream.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Will)**

After the conversation with Alexx, Will went to find Hollier, his calm façade hiding the storm brewing underneath. He looked everywhere the man might have been and even asked a few of the other soldiers where he was, most of them didn't know where he was, but one soldier told him that Hollier was in the shower stalls. Thanking the soldier, Will walked to the place Hollier was and stepped inside, waiting for the officer to finish showering and come out of the stall he was in. Hollier looked over at his boss and gave a bit of a smile.

"Hey boss, what's up?" He asked.

Keeping his calm façade, Will walked up to him and delivered a swift punch to his face, effectively breaking his nose and causing the man to yell out and bring his hand to his face, catching the blood that dripped out of his nose.

"If you  _ever_  go near my daughter again, I will make sure that you and your wife can never have sex again. Do I make myself clear?" He asked.

The venom in his voice caused the man to look at him and narrow his eyes a little while he still held his hand to his nose. He nodded and Will growled, reaching up and grabbing the man's nose.

"I said, do I make myself clear?" He asked.

The man groaned and tried to follow Will's hand as he pulled his nose.

"Yessir" he said.

Will nodded and let the man's nose go, punching him in the gut and then walking out of the shower stalls and out of the base, deciding to go for a walk to clear his head, when he heard a pained yowl. He didn't really worry about it, until he heard the yowl turn into a scream, one that he instantly recognised. He ran into the base and saw Ironhide.

"Ironhide, get Ratchet ASAP!" He yelled.

The black mech turned to look at Will, to see that he'd already disappeared. Furrowing his optic ridges, he commed Ratchet and told him to get outside on the double, before he himself walked outside. Just in time to see Will come through the trees with a screaming and thrashing around Alexx in his arms. Ratchet came out of the base and as soon as he saw the state Alexx was in, he hurried to Will and put his servo down for the human. Will placed Alexx in Ratchet's hand and when the medimech stood up and walked towards the med bay, he followed.

"What's wrong with her?" He asked.

Ratchet didn't answer, instead he walked into the med bay and carefully lay Alexx on a berth, instantly scanning her.

"Ratchet?" Will asked.

The mech turned around to look at Will and furrowed his optic ridges.

"I am unsure William, physically she is fine, I will have to do an advanced scan of her cerebral cortex to find out if this is merely psychogenic" he replied.

Will didn't understand what Ratchet had just said, but he nodded anyway and the mech got straight to work.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx's mind)**

The pain was unbearable, everything was fuzzy like on a television with no reception, that is until it cleared up and she found herself in a field with long grass surrounding her, but where she was stood was short grass. She looked around, hoping to find some clue as to where she was.

"Hello?" She called.

The only answer she got was the sound of her own voice echoed back to her. She continued to look around, this wasn't a normal place, there were no flies, or bees, or wasps, she couldn't see any butterflies or hear any birds singing, she couldn't smell anything and though the grass and trees around her were moving in the slight breeze, she couldn't feel anything. Where was she? She was about to call out again, when she heard a growl behind her. Whipping around, her eyes went wide as she saw a melanistic jaguar standing there.

"G-good kitty" she stammered.

The jaguar stopped growling and just looked at her before sitting down.

 _"You do not recognise me?"_ A voice asked.

Alexx looked around, trying to find the source of the voice, but she found nothing.

"Who said that?" She called.

Her heart rate began to climb and her breathing began to speed up. The voice spoke again.

 _"Over here you ditz"_ it said.

She stopped looking and slowly turned towards the jaguar that was looking at her with what appeared to be amused eyes. Slowly, she walked up to the cat and knelt in front of it.

"Are you the one who's talking to me?" She asked.

To her surprise, the jaguar gave a nod and she shot back, falling onto her backside as she did.

"T-that's not possible" she accused.

The jaguar sneezed in a laugh, its eyes laughing too.

 _"Relax, my name is Thera, I'm your shifter"_ it said.

Alexx furrowed her brow, what she'd read about shifters didn't say anything about the person's shifter side having an entity of its own.

" _You're_ my shifter? H-how is that possible?" She asked.

The jaguar walked towards her and as it did, it shifted into an exact copy of her and the replica sat down in front of her.

"Shifters are born as normal, either in human form or in their animal form, it's not until they reach adulthood and mate for the first time that the shifter side is awakened" she said.

Alexx stared at the other Alexx and slowly sat up straight.

"So you're saying that...shifters have bipolar?" She asked.

The other Alexx chuckled and gave a bit of a nod.

"In essence yes, but we're a part of you and no manner of treatment will make us go away. Until now, when you shifted into your feline form, it was still you" she replied.

Alexx raised an eyebrow and crossed her legs.

"And what, now when I shift I'll be you?" She asked.

The other Alexx shook her head.

"No not at all, most of the time you'll be able to keep me in check, only when you're feeling extreme emotions will I come out. Its kinda a self preservation thing. I'm your wild side" she explained.

Alexx furrowed her brow.

"So...let me get this straight, you're the Hulk to me Bruce Banner right?" She asked.

The other Alexx laughed but nodded.

"Essentially yes, but unlike Bruce Banner, you can control me with practice" she said.

Alexx was still confused.

"Why are you telling me this? If you're my wild side, shouldn't you be against being controlled?" She questioned.

Again the other Alexx chuckled.

"If we had met under different circumstances then yes, but first meetings aren't supposed to scare the other half. Plus, you have questions, I can answer them" she said.

Alexx was about to open her mouth and speak, when she felt an electrical shock in her chest.

"What the...?" She asked.

She felt the shock again and it caused her entire body to jerk.

"What's happening?" She asked.

The other Alexx looked to the side and growled.

"Somebody is trying to revive you with a defibrillator" she replied.

The shock was felt again and the other Alexx shifted into the jaguar and got up.

 _"We will meet again, but for now, this is adieu"_ she said.

She then ran off into the long grass and Alexx felt the shock again, the clearing around her started to melt away and everything went back to the staticy TV screen.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Normal)**

Ratchet shocked her once more and finally he registered a pulse and he cycled his intakes in relief. He looked down to Will who had been watching the entire thing with desperation in his eyes and he nodded.

"She's back" he said.

Will deflated with relief and looked up at the mech.

"What happened?" He asked.

Ratchet looked back to the shifter female on the table and then looked at Will.

"I would suggest asking her that when she wakes up" he replied.

Will furrowed his brow in confusion.

"What do you mean?" He questioned.

Ratchet cycled his intakes and knelt down, offering his servo to the human male. Will climbed aboard and Ratchet got up, walking over to his desk where he sat down and placed Will onto the top of it.

"The human processor is active all of the time, processing different things, such as scents, sights, feelings and sounds. When humans recharge some of the sections of the processor will go into temporary stasis, to put it simply, it goes into the same state that a motor engine does when it idles" he said.

Will nodded, not entirely sure where this was going.

"What's the point of telling me this?" He asked.

Ratchet cycled his intakes in a minute amount of annoyance.

"Before Alexx went into cardiac arrest, her processor was extremely active, but when cardiac arrest occured, her processor shut down, except her Occipital Lobe, her Temporal Lobe, her Primary Auditory Lobe, her Wernicke's Area and her Broca's Area" he said.

Will just looked at him.

"In English please?" He asked.

Ratchet pinched his nasal ridge.

"The activity of these areas of her processor suggest that she was hearing voices and replying to said voices while being unconscious" he said.

Will furrowed his brow.

"Are you sure she wasn't just dreaming?" He questioned.

Ratchet looked at him.

"No, there was no Rapid Eye Movement and she was in cardiac arrest, I am pretty sure she was not entertaining vivid fantasies of which she would have while in a state of recharge. This was something different entirely" he replied.

Will looked at him and then looked over to Alexx.

"Is she gonna be alright?" He asked.

Ratchet cycled his intakes again.

"I am not sure William. As long as she does not go into a cardiac arrest again, she should recover quite fast, her superior healing ability has already healed the leisions on her spark caused by the cardiac arrest, but the cause of such a thing is still unknown" he answered.

Will nodded and looked at his adoptive daughter.

"I'd better tell Sarah" he said.

Ratchet nodded and offered his servo, which Will climbed upon and then the medical mech put him on the floor and watched him walk out of the med bay.


	8. Chapter 8

**(A few days later)**

A few days had passed and Alexx hadn't woken up yet, though Ratchet was adamant that it wouldn't be long until she did so. He'd scanned and rescanned every inch of her body a total of five times and had repeatedly assured Will that she was physically healthy and her neural output was completely normal, much to the human's peace of mind. Sarah had arrived on base the day before yesterday, after Will had received authority to call her considering the situation and the man was surprised at how well his wife had taken to being surrounded by giant alien robots, he supposed that she was more worried about Alexx than she was about them. Right now Sarah was sat by Alexx's bedside, after the Shifter female had been moved to a human bed so that the family could be there for her, she had Alexx's hand in hers and was rubbing her thumb over the back of the appendage. She had left Annabelle at a friends for now, not wanting to put the infant through the stress of travelling and then the noise here too. A noise came from beside her and she looked over to see Will just coming back into the room after going to the bathroom.

"How is she?" He asked.

Sarah gave him a deadpanned look and then looked back at the girl laying on the bed, heart monitors beeping away, recording her beats per minute and the monitor on her head that was recording her brain waves.

"She's the same as she was when you left Will" she snapped.

Both had been snapping at the other since Sarah had arrived, because of the flight that Sarah had undergone as well as the fact that Will had been awake just sitting with Alexx until his wife had arrived,both were really tired and relying on coffee to keep them awake. Of course, Ratchet wasn't happy about the overuse of caffeine and had told them as much too. However, they hadn't listened and were still abusing the caffeinated beverages which was only part of the reason that they kept snapping. The next time one snapped at the other, Ratchet intervened, partly because he was worried about what repercussions of such verbal violence would affect Alexx, but it was also because he was getting fed up of listening to the two humans argue.

"Alright the both of you, get out of my med bay. You are both in serious need of recharge before one or both of you end up in emergency stasis and I am fed up of hearing your verbal violence towards one another. Either you both go to William's quarters or you stay here and recharge...quietly" he said.

Sarah looked up at the mech and was about to argue with him, but Will stopped her,saying that they'd be no use to Alexx if they were both so tired they were almost passing out from the sheer exhaustion.

"I will inform you the nanosecond Alexx regains consciousness" Ratchet said.

The blonde woman looked up at him again before sighing and nodding, getting up from the chair that she was sat on and following Will to his quarters. She knew that they were both worried sick about their adoptive daughter after what happened, what if it happened again ? Heck they didn't even know what had happened and every single one of Ratchet's scans had been inconclusive, he'd called it a medical phenomena, because he just couldn't seem to work out what had caused the pain in Alexx's head.

"It just doesn't make any sense Will, she's healthy and that robot medic said that her brain's functioning normally and doesn't have any tumours, so what caused her to collapse?" Sarah asked.

Will looked up at his wife from turning the bedsheets down and sighed.

"I don't know Sarah, it happened right after she...right after she had sex with Sergeant Hollier" he said.

A thoughtful gaze made its way across his face and he walked out of his quarters without another word, heading to the med bay again.

"Ratchet, she had sex for the first time just minutes before her collapse, could that be the reason why?" He asked.

The medic looked down at the human and snorted.

"William, human interfacing cannot cause cerebral pain and psychosis" he said.

The human raised an eyebrow.

"She's not a normal human Ratchet, she's a Shifter remember" he stated.

The mech growled at him and leaned heavily against his tool table in an effort to not lose his temper.

"Then I would suggest that you consult with this Shifter Handbook that you have been confabulating so much about as I do not have any answers for you. Until recently, I was unaware that Shifters existed, therefore I have no intimate knowledge of them or their physics" he said.

Will nodded and sighed, giving one last glance to his unconscious daughter before leaving the room and heading back to his quarters.

_**~Shifting**   **Hearts~**_

**(Medbay)**

Ratchet was doing some routine maintenance on his tools when he heard Alexx's breathing change, signalling that she was waking up. Turning around, he activated his holoform and walked over to the bed, just in time to see her eyes open.

"You have regained consciousness I see. How are you feeling?" He asked.

His voice was exactly the same in this form as it was in his root form and Alexx looked up at him, licking her lips, swallowing and clearing her throat.

"What happened?" She asked back.

Ratchet narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Don't answer a question with a question, it will get us nowhere. Answer my question and then I shall answer yours" he chastised.

Alexx looked at him and rolled her eyes before closing them, she inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly.

"I'm tired, I have a headache as big as your ass, my chest hurts, my crotch feels like I've had a cervical examination and I need to pee. There, are you happy?" She asked.

Ratchet rolled his eyes.

"Being happy is a matter of perspective but I assume you were inquiring as to whether your answer was remotely satisfactory, in which case the answer is of the affirmative. As for the other matters; your thorax will be experiencing some minor discomfort as you went into a cardiac arrest and I had to defibrillate your spark. Your genitalia is experiencing discomfort because prior to you experiencing a seizure you had sexual intercourse and your desire to urinate is a good sign. However, I am displeased with the thought of you engaging in any kind of locomotion in your current condition, so I shall promptly return with a bedpan" he said.

Alexx furrowed her brow at what he said and then just sighed, waiting for the medic to return. When he did, he proceeded to pull the sheets back and help her sit up.

"I trust you can manage to rid yourself of your waste liquids without any intervention on my part?" He asked.

Alexx looked at him and nodded and he disappeared, his root form turning back to his tools and arranging them in a specific order. The Shifter femme pulled her pants down and managed to position the bedpan where she needed it and started to relieve herself. Once she was done, she moved the bedpan away and got herself dressed again, calling to the mech.

"Done" she said.

The medic reactivated his holoform and came over to collect the bedpan, taking it into the human bathrooms and emptying it down the toilet before coming back out and putting the portable bed toilet into a vat of scalding hot water. He then returned and stood next to the bed. As he did so, Alexx got to have a good look at him and as he pulled a pen torch out of his top coat pocket and switched it on, she smirked.

"You're missing the cane" she said.

He gave her a funny look and held his finger up.

"What are you implying? Look at my servo extension" he said.

Alexx looked at his finger as he shone the light in her eyes, checking her pupil response times.

"I'm assuming that you based your holoform off of the main named character of House M.D, who is of course played by Hugh Laurie" she explained.

Ratchet pulled away and started doing other tests.

"What provoked your reasoning?" He questioned.

Alexx looked at him.

"Oh nothing, apart from the fact that your holoform bears an uncanny resemblance to said character" she replied.

Ratchet glanced at her as she said this, but said nothing more.

"Your reaction rates appear to be perfectly normal. You mentioned that you were experiencing discomfort in your cerebellum" he stated.

Alexx nodded carefully and raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, what happened?" She asked.

The mech glanced at the monitor recording her brain waves and cycled his intakes.

"You experienced some form of seizure, during which your neural output was...off the chart...as your human doctors phrase it. Certain parts of your cerebral cortex were active during this seizure, parts that from what I can ascertain are not ordinarily active during such an experience. I was rather hoping that you could explain your experience" he replied.

Alexx looked at him and tried to think about what had happened, it hurt a little and the monitor started beeping, with her brain waves going everywhere. But then the beeping stopped and the brain waves went back to normal.

"I was in a field, I couldn't hear anything, I couldn't see anything but grass and trees and I couldn't feel anything. But, then there was a panther there and it looked just like my panther form and it spoke to me. Told me that she was my Shifter and that she appeared because I..." She began.

Ratchet raised his eyebrows.

"Go on" he urged.

Alexx looked at him.

"She was there because I had sex. She told me that I had questions and she could answer them" she finished.

This time the medic furrowed his brow and shook his helm.

"I suspect that this was merely your processor attempting to justify what was occurring. I wouldn't agonise over it" he reasoned.

Alexx nodded and then sighed, leaning back against the bed, before she looked at him.

"Hey, how come you aren't affected by me being in heat?" She accused.

Ratchet deactivated his holoform and continued to arrange his tools.

"Your oestrus cycle affected us all Alexx, however, I believe you will find that I had matters that held dire importance over the urge to interface with you" he replied.

Alexx nodded and then sighed again.

"What a big cock up this turned out to be" she muttered.

Ratchet glanced at her.

"What prompted you to postulate that notion?" He asked.

She looked at him.

"Well first I come into heat for the first time, which is worse than all my other menstrual cycles and I have three giant, alien robotic organisms lusting over me because of it, then I have sex with some guy and regret it afterwards and get chewed out by Ironhide 'cause of it, then I have a seizure and end up here" she said.

Ratchet snorted.

"I will concur that your sojourn here has been consequential to say the least, but I would not call it a...cock up" he rationalised.

Alexx snorted.

"Seems like it to me. With the people who are after me..." She began.

Ratchet growled.

"Those who are predating you shall have to go through myself, Ironhide and Optimus to get to you. Furthermore, they shall have to pass William too" he interjected.

The female shifter just looked up at the mech and gave a bit of a chuckle.

"I guess I'm well protected with three giant alien robotic organisms and an adoptive father who can become trigger happy if anyone harms his precious daughters" she said.

Ratchet nodded.

"And as for what you told Ironhide about William, I believe what he has been doing for the past two lunar and solar cycles has made it positively clear that you are not 'in the way' as you put it" he said.

Alexx looked at him, but when he didn't say anything, she just sighed.

"I guess you're right, I was wallowing in self pity because I regretted what I'd done, I shouldn't've taken it out on Will, Sarah or Ironhide" she said.

Ratchet didn't say a word, he just continued to clean every tool he had on the table, picking it up from its designated spot, cleaning it and putting it back again. He had informed Will and Sarah that Alexx had woken up, but he had told them that they should rest some more, that the Shifter femme could deal without them for a few more hours.

"Yes" he said.

Alexx gave him a strange look and he looked at her, his face so serious that she wondered if he actually  _could_ express emotions.

"Wha'?" She asked.

The mech turned away from his tool table and looked right at her.

"In response to your earlier assumption of my holographic form, yes I did base the appearance off of the title character of the medical Satellite Television Show  _House M.D_. Just as Ironhide based his holoform off of a celebrity named Dolph Lundgren and Optimus based his holoform on a celebrity named Pierce Brosnan" he said.

Alexx smiled and nodded.

"Well...House is quite good looking and...well...its a good match. If your holoform looked like Carlisle Cullen from Twilight I would've told you that it didn't suit you" she said.

Ratchet rolled his optics.

"I am glad that you approve, now in order for you to fully recover, you must enter recharge" he said.

The Shifter femme smiled and nodded, laying down and closing her eyes. Ratchet looked down at her and allowed a small smile to grace his lip plating. He wouldn't let on to anyone, but the female had grown on him like a rust, though he found himself rather enjoying that fact and he was sure that the other two felt the same way.


	9. Chapter 9

**(A** **week later)**

A week had passed and thankfully after Alexx had slept for a little longer, Ratchet had seen fit to discharge her from the medbay, with strict orders to remain on base where he was easily accessible should she have another seizure. He was doubtful that she would, but Will had asked him to keep an eye on her for a while, to make sure that she didn't have another one. Sarah had gone home after the medic had cleared the Shifter, saying that she needed to get home for Annabelle. She wasn't happy about leaving Alexx at the base, especially not after the reality of giant alien robots set in and she just about had a mental breakdown, but when Will explained that Ratchet was probably the only doctor who would actually want to treat Alexx, let alone be able to, she reluctantly agreed and went home. Also during the week, Ratchet had managed to repair Jazz's chassis and had found enough charge to reignite the saboteur's spark bringing him back, much to the joy and the relief of the other mechs. Though they'd heard of one another from the other mechs and humans, Jazz and Alexx had yet to meet and Will was a little apprehensive about them doing so.

"Jazz is a little uh...eccentric, but he's one of the good guys and he won't hurt you" he said.

Alexx smiled at him and nodded. She'd got used to the mechs walking around in both their holoforms and their root forms and could easily distinguish one from the other via their human holos. But with this new mech, she knew that she was gonna be wary of him and she was aware that he was an Autobot, having heard from Ironhide about what the silver mech was like and even he'd assured her that the mech wouldn't hurt her. She sighed and looked at Will, smiling and hugging him.

"I'll try not to be too aggressive towards him, but I'm not making any promises" she warned.

Will smiled and hugged her back before pulling away and glancing over to where Sergeant Hollier was just coming back onto the base after a few days off with his broken nose and bruised ribs. The glare that passed between them was chilling and Alexx found a shiver working its way up her spine.

"I'm gonna go to the rec room, I spied a PlayStation in there earlier and I think I saw Burnout 2: Point of Impact. Never played it, but I wanna go try, see how well I do" she said.

She turned and walked towards the rec room, passing Optimus on the way and tapping the grille on the front.

"Hey big guy" she said.

The mech rumbled in greeting and she walked off, going into the rec room and going right over to the PlayStation. After a bit of fumbling, she managed to find out how to turn it on and quickly worked out the controls, starting to play the game that she wanted to. For a few laps, she kept crashing the car she was driving, but once she got the hang of driving, she was able to get around the track without crashing...not into other vehicles anyway. She was so interested and engrossed in the game that she didn't hear anyone else come into the rec room until he spoke.

"Primus, if ya drive like that in real life, de other humans better watch out" he said.

_**~Shifting**   **Hearts~**_

**(Jazz)**

Being revived after what happened in Mission City was a strange experience for him. The last thing he remembered was facing down Megatron and the Decepticon leader shooting him and then picking him up and taking him to the top of a building, then nothing...until now. Ratchet had explained that Sam had shoved the Allspark into Megatron's spark chamber and killed him and the humans had accepted them on their planet. Jazz was glad that Megatron was out of the picture and pleasantly surprised that the humans had allowed them to take up refuge on this planet, at least he'd have time to fully recover from the revival experience. He'd also been informed that there was a Shifter amongst them and that she was very exuberant, not to mention feisty. Of course hearing about this Shifter piqued the Saboteur's interest and he decided that he'd have to find this out for himself. So once Ratchet had discharged him from the medbay with orders for light duties only, he had immediately made himself known to the humans, but particularly Will, asking all kinds of questions about Alexx and really listening to the answers the human gave.

"So where's she at?" He asked.

Will pointed to the rec room and Jazz nodded, walking over there and transforming. He activated his holoform and decided...once he saw what it looked like in his rear view mirror, that he'd customise it a little. He changed the color of his holoform's skin, making it dark and instead of his holo having short, blonde hair...he gave himself long, black dreadlocks that were tied in a ponytail. Then he went about sorting out the jawline, making it a little sharp and defined. He didn't want it to be too sharp, otherwise he wouldn't fit in, but he didn't want it to be too round either so he picked the right amount of sharpness and nodded. His cheekbones were defined and masculine too in all, he looked for all intents and purposes, like Will Smith with dreadlocks, pretty handsome...if he did say so himself. Next on the agenda was the clothing, they way he was currently dressed didn't appease him one bit so he chose a tight fitting black vest top and dark grey baggy sweat pants, with grey sneakers. Now happy with the way his holo looked, he made a show of getting out of the muscle car and walking over to the door, turning the handle and walking in.

He'd expected the occupant to notice his arrival and was a little confused when she didn't, it was only when he looked to the large screen mounted on the wall that he saw the reason for her lack of awareness. The game she was playing appeared to be a driving or racing game or sorts and he was shocked at the way she was controlling the car. Every corner she drove the car around, she hit the barrier that was...he guessed...supposed to stop the car from going onto the verge. His mouth dropped open when at one point, she drove around a corner so fast and hit a barrier so hard that she rolled the virtual vehicle. That was when he thought that he'd better make himself known.

"Primus, if ya drive like that in real life, de other humans better watch out" he said.

As expected, as soon as he spoke...the game was paused and the femme was on her feet and facing him in a defensive crouch. Seeing that he'd scared her, he raised his hands palms facing towards her in a surrendering pose and a sheepish smile found its way onto his face.

"Sorreh, din't mean ta scare ya" he said.

As she crouched there, he took the time to look her over, she was lithe in body, not overly muscled, but toned enough to tell him that she must work out to keep it like that and she had...what he guessed to be a medium stature. Her short black hair was spiky and he vaguely wondered if she styled it like that or if it was the way it fell naturally. Her skin...where it wasn't pale like some of the humans he'd seen around base, it wasn't as dark as Sergeant Epps' skin either. Her skin tone was more...a quick search revealed the word...tanned. Her eyes were a rich hazel color and the way they kept flicking from their normal color to a Jade color had him mesmerised.

Tearing his optics away from hers, he took the chance to look over what she was wearing, it seemed to be practically the same as what his holoform was wearing, only the tank top was less tight and she had black pumps on instead. Bringing his optics back up to her hazel ones he smiled a little.

"Can I put me arms down now? They're gettin' tired" he said.

He watched her as she took in his form, her eyes landing on the Autobot insignia on his dog tags before she relaxed enough for him to put his arms down by his sides. He continued to watch her as she watched him, before he decided to make the first move. Stepping forward slowly, he did what he'd seen other humans do when greeting one another...he held out his hand.

"Name's Jazz lil lady, an' you must be Alexx" he said.

He expected her to tense up at hearing her name flowing from his lips when she hadn't given it, but instead she seemed to relax more and her lips curled into a smile as she took his hand and shook it.

"Yeah, nice to meet you...finally" she uttered.

Jazz smiled and shook her hand too before removing the appendage when she let it go and he let it drop down to his side again. He noticed the awkward silence that they were slipping into and to avoid such a position, he motioned to the television screen.

"What ya playin'?" He asked.

Turning around, Alexx looked at the screen and then looked back at him.

"Uh...Burnout 2: Point of Impact...but I'm not very good, as you saw" she replied.

Jazz chuckled and waved her off.

"All ya need is some practice" he said.

Alexx chuckled and nodded, before dropping to her knees and picking up the other controller, offering it to him.

"You wanna join?" She asked.

Weighing up his options, Jazz smiled again and took the offered controller, bringing himself to a sitting position alongside her and watching as she changed the setting to two player mode and they started to race. With Jazz being the perfect driver and Alexx crashing into every barrier on a corner. Jazz chuckled and as he'd already finished the race, he gave her a few pointers.

"When ya go 'round a corner at speed, ya wanna press on de break an' den the gas an' ya wanna turn into de slide...ya won't as many barriers an' ya won' lose no speed" he said.

Alexx smiled at him and thanked him as they went to race again, with the shifter incorporating what Jazz had told her and having a much smoother run.

_**~Shifting**   **Hearts~**_

**(A f** **ew hours later/Alexx)**

After a couple of games with Jazz, the mech had declared that he needed to get some rest, otherwise Ratchet or 'The Hatchet' as he called him, would tell him off, which the mech had also said in words that Alexx only just understood. While the silver mech was resting, Alexx decided to go into the medbay to talk to Ratchet, who was messing around with a mechanical hand at his desk.

"Uh...you wanted to do a few...experiments...with me. Well I have time now if you'd like to" she said.

The mech looked down at her and his lip plates formed a thin line.

"They are not  _experiments,_  I would never use humans as test subjects. But as you are willing to engage in the tests I wish to perform I cannot deny your offer. You are aware of what I wish to take note of yes?" He asked.

Shaking her head, the shifter femme walked over to him as he placed his hand on the floor for her to climb upon. She jumped onto his hand and he stood, walking over to a large berth.

"I wish to take scans of how the stress of shifting affects your body. Being unaware of Shifters prior to your appearance, I must say I am curious as to your abilities. Would you consent to further tests?" He questioned.

Thinking about it, the Shifter femme looked up at him and shrugged.

"I don't see why not, they're not gonna hurt me are they?" She inquired.

The medic got a horrified look on his face and he quickly shook his helm.

"What in the name of Primus would give you  _that_  absurd approximation?" He asked.

Alexx shrugged and smirked.

"Just making sure" she replied.

Shaking his head, Ratchet huffed a little before allowing her to step off of his hand and onto the berth.

"You have been around Jazz for too long already" he surmised.

Alexx chuckled and sat on the berth.

"It's only been three hours" she said.

Ratchet looked at her, a sly smirk on his faceplates.

"Three joors with that mech is too long even by my standards. The mech is far too exuberant" he stated.

Alexx laughed and shook her head.

"Yet you revived him anyway" she teased.

The medic gave her a sour look.

"It was revive him or make him into repair drones. Personally I rather like the idea of having Jazz more than I like the idea of faulty repair drones" he said.

Alexx just chuckled.

"You're a strange mech Ratchet" she said.

The mech raised an optic ridge and snorted.

"Dear girl you have not even  _seen_  strange" he said.


	10. Chapter 10

**(A few months later)**

A few months had gone by and Alexx had become good friends with Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet and Will had noticed that she had become closer to them than she was to any of the humans and it was worrying him. He wouldn't mind if Alexx was getting close to one of the single humans, that would be normal considering she was a sexually mature Shifter now, but instead he found her getting close to the four Autobots in a way she should be doing to another human or another Shifter. He desperately hoped that the mechs hadn't noticed her change in behaviour around them, but if they had then they weren't saying anything about it, whether that was because they respected her enough not to embarrass her or because they really hadn't noticed, he didn't know but he was happy about it. During the last week he'd been keeping a close eye on her and finally he decided to confront her about why she was getting close to Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet.

"I dunno Will, I just feel a strange...almost magnetic pull towards them...all of them" she said.

Will didn't know what to say to that, he was confused as to how she could feel a magnetic pull towards four alien robots and if he was honest, he wasn't happy about it but what could he do? It wasn't like he could stop her from seeing them, she practically lived at the base and they were always around. Vaguely he wondered if they felt the same about her and if they did then he would need to do something about _that_. It was one thing to have your adopted daughter develop a crush on four giant alien robots, but for said four giant alien robots to like her in the same way, it angered him just thinking about it. He found himself giving them dirty looks before he corrected himself and shook it off, there was no use giving the mechs dirty looks if they didn't feel the same for Alexx. Thankfully though, he had other things to take his mind off of what his adoptive daughter was going through, like the fact that seven new Autobots had landed a week ago and General Morshower had informed him that his idea for the Non-Biological Extra-terrestrial Species Treaty had been accepted and as a result they were to be moved to a bigger base in Diego Garcia, so Will had his mind on getting everything packed up and moved to the new base.

While all this was happening though, Alexx had gone outside the base and had bumped into the one human man apart from Robert Epps, who didn't take any interest in her when she was openly flirting with all the men. Richard Matheson. A smile worked its way onto her lips and she walked over to him, standing next to him as he smoked a cigarette.

"How're ya doin' Alexx?" He asked.

The Shifter femme smiled and nodded, before leaning her head against the wall and closing her eyes. It was nice to be near a guy who didn't leech over her all the time, she knew it was because he didn't have any interest in her in that way, because he wasn't that way inclined. She looked over at him and then smiled.

"You said the other week, that you have a friend who knows a lot about Shifters" she said.

Richard nodded and then looked over at her, blowing the smoke out away from her before turning towards her and stubbing the cigarette out.

"Yeah, his name's Thomas and he's one of the ancestors of the Thomas who petitioned to give Shifters equal rights among men" he said.

Alexx looked at him and smiled. If he was one of the ancestors of the legend among Shifters, then she could trust him too. Richard smiled to himself and then looked around.

"If you want, I can take you to his clinic now, I have a few hours off anyway" he said.

The Shifter femme nodded and beamed at him, finally she would have a chance to really know about Shifters and not read about it from some Shifter handbook that her birth parents had given her adoptive parents...maybe finally she would be able to understand why she felt such a pull towards Optimus, Ironhide, Jazz and Ratchet.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(A few hours later)**

Finally Alexx and Richard made it to the clinic where the latter's friend Thomas worked and Richard stopped the truck, turning the ignition off.

"Want me to come with or...?" He asked.

Alexx looked at him and shook her head smiling.

"No, I think I can handle this myself. Thomas Moore right?" She asked.

Richard nodded and watched as Alexx took a deep breath before getting out of the truck and walking into the clinic. She was surprised to see that there was no-one else there, so she walked straight up to the desk and the woman looked up at her.

"Can I help you?" She asked.

Alexx smiled kindly and fidgeted a little.

"Uh...I'm here to see a Thomas Moore" she replied.

The woman's eyes opened wide and she stood up, taking her glasses off and her mouth dropped open.

"By the stars, you look just like your mother" she said.

The Shifter femme furrowed her brow and took a step back from the older woman, who seemed to calm down and cleared her throat.

"I'm sorry love it's just that...I knew your mother, when she was pregnant with you" she confessed.

The confession made Alexx's eyes open wide and she stepped closer to the old woman, who's ice blue eyes seemed to roam over her body.

"She was a wonderful young woman, always helping out here as best she could, of course after she met that stunning Dale Pro, well..." She said.

Alexx raised an eyebrow.

"Well what?" She asked.

The older woman just gave a tight smile.

"They were in love, you can't deny that...but that Dale Pro, he was a trouble maker and when your mother announced that she was pregnant, none of us thought Dale Pro would stay with her. After all, it's unusual for a Leopard and a Jaguar to be together in such a way, but they pulled it off and dare I say that hearing the news of your mothers pregnancy calmed him down somewhat" she replied.

Alexx smiled slightly and then the clearing of a throat was heard behind the older woman and she turned around to see Thomas Moore stood there.

"Ah Mister Moore...this is Alexx, she's the daughter of Jackie and Dale Pro" she said.

Thomas smiled and nodded, holding his hand out for Alexx to take.

"A pleasure to meet you Alexx. I'm sure you have questions" he stated.

Alexx nodded and Thomas showed her to his office, before looking at the older woman.

"Mrs Reade, if you'd be so kind as to clear my schedule for the new few hours I would be grateful" he said.

The old woman nodded and got up, turning the open sign to closed and locking the doors, she then sat back down at her computer and smiled. It was nice to see that Jacqueline's daughter had survived the raid by the ASTS and what a fine young woman she'd grown up to be.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Thomas and Alexx)**

As soon as they got into the office, Thomas closed the door and motioned for the Shifter femme to take a seat, which she did. He then sat down in front of her.

"I expect you're very confused and want to know anything and everything about your kind. Especially seeing as you're an Alpha" he said.

Alexx's brow furrowed at this and Thomas held up a hand with a smile.

"First let's have the first question that's on your mind" he said.

Alexx raised an eyebrow at him.

"Which one?" She asked.

Thomas leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees and clasped his hands together.

"The question that's been swirling around your mind since Mrs. Reade mentioned your parents" he replied.

Alexx frowned at this and she looked at him.

"Are you a Shifter?" She asked.

Thomas shook his head and sat up chuckling.

"Me? Oh no, no...heavens no. But Mrs. Reade is. In fact she's one of the only surviving elders of the feline Shifter clan" he said.

Another frown wrinkled Alexx's forehead.

"Clans?" She questioned.

Thomas resumed the pose he had taken up earlier.

"Some will refer to them as families, others as clans. You have the feline clan, the canine clan, the avian clan, the bear clan...you get where I'm going with this?" He asked.

Alexx nodded and then smiled.

"What's an Alpha?" She asked.

Thomas smirked a little.

"An Alpha is a Shifter with the ability to Shift into any member of their specific family within a specific clan. For example, you're the Alpha of the  _Panthera_ family so you can Shift into any member of that family" he said.

Alexx nodded and then Thomas continued.

"Alphas are generally perceived as royalty within their clans and because of their unique ability to shift into any animal of a specific family, this means they can breed with other members of the family. Alphas are often characterised as having a big build and by big I don't mean fat, I mean toned. And if one were to do a scan of an Alpha Shifter, they would see a little sac that is located beside the gall bladder" he said.

Alexx frowned again.

"What's that do?" She asked.

Thomas smirked more.

"Its a poison sac. Its completely harmless to Alpha Shifters but can and will be fatal to a human or a normal Shifter. The poison is an acidic compound that if used correctly, or in some cases incorrectly, will cause irrepairable damage to the veins and arteries of the victim, promoting a slow and very painful death. The poison sac is connected to a long tube that goes up alongside the oesophagus and will exit through the mouth, it can be smeared onto a blade or just used as acidic spit" he explained.

Alexx nodded and then told him the other thing that was on her mind.

"I'm having strange feelings for four of my friends. Its like they're magnets and I'm a paperclip or something. I'm drawn to them whenever they're near and can't stop thinking about them" she said.

Thomas smiled and took a hold of her hands, making her look at him.

"Alpha Shifters can take up to ten mates. Mrs. Reade has seen it before, a female Alpha Shifter with ten males around her at any one time. This feeling of magnetism is completely normal, in fact its a good sign, because it means your Shifter has chosen her mates" he said.

Alexx's eyes opened wide at the thought of Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet being her mates, how was it possible? She shook her head and then swallowed.

"What'll happen if I don't accept them as my mates?" She asked.

Thomas licked his lips.

"Well that would depend on whether they have accepted you as their mates or not. If they have, then they will feel immense pain in their chest, like a broken heart and they will become depressed until you accept them, this is also vice versa" he replied.

Alexx nodded and then she smiled, beginning to ask him other questions and getting the answers she desired. When she left the clinic she not only had more knowledge of Shifters in general, but thanks to Mrs. Reade, she had more knowledge of her parents too. The elder Shifter had given her a photo of her parents and also a video that they had made for her, when Jackie was first pregnant with her. She got into the truck, where Richard was just waking up from a nap.

"So...did you get your answers?" He asked.

He then yawned as Alexx nodded and hugged him, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"Yes...thank you so much Richard" she said.

Richard smiled and nodded, wiping his eyes and putting his seatbelt on. He had noticed the picture and DVD in her hands, but didn't ask about it, thinking that it may be confidential. Starting the engine, he waited for her to put her seatbelt on before heading back towards the base.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(A few hours later/Will)**

Will was frantic, he hadn't seen Alexx for nearly three hours and he was beginning to worry. Usually, she would be in the rec room dancing and playing video games, or she'd be in the mess hall stuffing her face with sugar filled deserts or she'd be in her room sleeping. Will had checked all of these spots and had even asked Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet if they had seen her, but they hadn't. It wasn't until he saw a truck coming towards the base with Alexx and Private Matheson in the front seats that he stopped looking.

Storming up to the truck, he threw the door open and fixed Alexx with a steely glare.

"Where have you been?" He asked.

He waited for an answer and was surprised to see that Alexx seemed unfazed by his anger and instead handed him a photo. Taking it, Will looked it over before he looked back at Alexx, then he looked back at the picture again.

"Is this your...?" He asked.

Alexx nodded with tears in her eyes.

"My mom and dad" she said.

Will looked at her and as soon as she had the seatbelt off, he had her in his arms in seconds.

"Where'd you get this?" He asked.

Alexx told him about Richard's friend who knew a lot about Shifters and she even told him about Mrs. Reade the elder Shifter, of course she left out the part about Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet being her mates, she needed to tell them before she told Will. After all was said and done, Will sent Alexx on her way and looked at Richard.

"That was a good thing you did today Soldier" he said.

Richard nodded and Will smiled at him.

"Thank you" he said.

The man smiled and once again nodded before driving onto the base, with Will following him on foot.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Two hours later/Alexx)**

Alexx had watched the DVD that Mrs. Reade had given her and as a result she had gone through a whole box of tissues, but at least she now knew what her parents sounded like and how much they loved her. After the DVD finished, Alexx made herself more presentable and decided that she needed to tell the mechs that they were her mates. Even if they didn't accept the fact, she wanted them to know. It was just lucky that the first place she went to...the medbay...had all four mechs in it.

"Guys, I need to talk to you" she said.

She went about explaining where she had been and what she had been told, telling them exactly what Thomas had told her, including the bit about the pain.

"I understand that it's a lot to take in, and if you don't want to accept, I'll be happy to just have you as friends" she said.

The mechs looked at one another, they had been speaking about this before Alexx had come into the medbay, each of them felt the telltale pull of a mate when she was near them, but they had to take into effect exactly what bonding with her would do to her. Ratchet had said that it would be too risky to bond with her, all of them and that such exposure to their spark tendrils could kill her, but they also knew that they would all feel the pain of being cut off from their mate, however...it was a price they were willing to pay to keep her alive.

"Are you certain Alexx?" Ratchet asked.

The Shifter femme nodded and smiled, before turning and walking out of the medbay, tears running down her face.


	11. Chapter 11

**(Three weeks later)**

Three weeks had gone by and the move from the Hoover Dam base wasn't going as smoothly as it should've been, it was taking General Morshower a bit of time to formally acquire the large hanger in Diego Garcia and with everything already packed and ready to go, it was a matter of waiting until they were given the go ahead. On top of the stress of moving, Will had noticed that Alexx had gone missing, he'd checked all of her usual haunts and she wasn't in either of them, he'd even phoned Sarah to see if the Shifter femme had somehow made her way home, but that was a dead end too. It wasn't unlike the short haired Shifter to disappear for a few days, but it had been almost a week since her disappearance and Will was worried. He'd tried asking the mechs if they'd seen her, but he got the same result, a no. The only mechs who seemed truly concerned about her disappearance were Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet, who had all joined in the search for her, but to no avail. In the end, Will cornered Private Richard Matheson.

"I need you to take me where you took Alexx" he said.

Richard looked at him strangely before shaking his head.

"I can't do that, they're not too keen on outsiders, especially if said outsiders are in army gear" he stated.

Will glared at the man and grabbed his shoulders, shaking him a little as he spoke.

"Listen, Alexx's gone missing, if there's anyone who can tell me where she might've gone, its the people you took her to see three weeks ago. Please" he begged.

Sighing, Richard rolled his eyes and nodded, Will nodded too and called for Ironhide, who transformed and rolled out to them. Both Richard and Will got in and the former pointed the way to the clinic he'd taken Alexx to, directing the mech down this street and that until they reached the place. The men got out and Ironhide activated his scanners, checking for any Decepticon activity while the two army officers walked into the clinic. As soon as they got in there, Mrs. Reade was on alert, but when she saw Richard, she calmed down a little.

"Richard, what're you doing here, and who's your friend?" She asked.

The man sighed and began to explain to Mrs. Reade what had happened, causing the female to gasp and put her hands to her mouth.

"Why didn't you come sooner you stupid boy. Thomas!" She called.

The man hurried out of the room while he was putting his coat on. Mrs. Reade went to explain, but he held up his hand and shook his head.

"I heard everything. Close the clinic Mrs. Reade, we have a Shifter to find before the ASTS find her" he said.

Mrs. Reade did what she was told and all four of them climbed into Ironhide, with Mrs. Reade and Richard in he back and Thomas and Will in the front.

"What did you guys talk about when you met?" Will asked.

Thomas made a face and sighed.

"I'm not really supposed to say. Shifters come to the clinic for confidentiality, it's a place here Shifters are safe and can talk about things that they couldn't in normal situations, its also a Shifter medical clinic too" he explained.

Will looked over at Thomas who sighed again.

"We talked about things related to Shifters, I told her that she's an Alpha Shifter and explained what one is and she told me that she was feeling a magnetic pull towards four men back home as she called it. We spoke about what would happen if those four men accepted her and she didn't accept them or vice versa" he said.

This made Will raise an eyebrow.

"And what will happen?" He asked.

Thomas looked at him and frowned.

"If they accept her but she doesn't accept them, they will become depressed and become reclusive, not eating, hardly drinking. If it goes on for longer than a week, there's a chance of them getting seriously ill. But if she accepts them and they don't accept her, the effects are much worse, illness takes hold faster and could potentially kill her" he said.

Suddenly the truck stopped dead, making all passengers rock forwards so much that if it weren't for the seatbelts, the two in the front would be through the windshield and probably dead. Thomas looked around and then looked at Will.

"Why did you stop?" He asked.

Will struggled for words, but it turned out he didn't need to answer because Mrs. Reade answered for him.

"He didn't" she said.

Thomas, Will and Richard looked at her and she calmly looked at Thomas, who looked puzzled.

"What?" He asked.

Mrs. Reade smiled slightly and looked at the dashboard of the truck.

"He didn't stop the truck" she replied.

Thomas made a disbelieving sound and motioned around.

"Then who did?" He questioned.

Mrs. Reade continued to look at the dashboard that she could see.

"The truck stopped the truck...you're one of Alexx's mates aren't you?" She asked.

The truck rumbled before static burst through the radio.

 _ **"Yes"**  _came the reply.

Thomas stared in shock at the radio, blinking a couple of times before he looked at Will who looked serious.

"You  _cannot_ tell  _anyone_ about this Mr. Moore" he said.

The man just squeaked a little and nodded, before Mrs. Reade began to speak again.

"Were you aware that she could die if you don't accept her?" She asked.

Yet again the truck rumbled.

 _ **"I wasn't aware, she didn't inform us that refusal could cause her to offline"**  _he said.

Mrs. Reade nodded and smiled sadly.

"She probably didn't want you to feel like you had to accept. But now I'm afraid you and the three others have no choice, unless you wish to lose her for good" she stated.

The truck revved its engine and Mrs. Reade took that as a no. She smiled and patted the seat.

"We have a way to go. But before I tell you the way...are you willing to accept her as a mate?" She inquired.

A loud rumble sounded from the truck.

 _ **"Yes. If accepting her as a mate is the only way to keep her online, then that is what I will do. The others would agree"**  _he answered.

Mrs. Reade nodded and directed them down one street, up another, down another until they were way out of the city and heading into desert.

"Once we get there, let me do all the talking. The tribe are reluctant to welcome anyone outside of their own and the Shifter community" she said.

Will looked at her in the rear view mirror.

"Why?" He asked.

Mrs. Reade looked at him and quirked her lips a little.

"The Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad is why. Long ago, members managed to get inside the camp by pretending to be Shifter sympathisers when they really wanted to kill them. What better place to do so than a village that takes Shifters in and helps them, it was like taking lambs to the slaughter. The tribe leader then made it so the village was wary of outsiders, to prevent another massacre" she explained.

Will nodded, understanding now.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(One hour later)**

Finally they arrived at the little village Mrs. Reade had told them about and the truck stopped. Will, Mrs. Reade, Richard and Thomas got out of the truck and another man appeared, startling Thomas. However the man looked like the truck sounded so Will reassured him that it was alright. Mrs. Reade came up to the front of the group and looked at them.

"Let me lead this, when I was Alexx's age, I came to stay here when my mate refused to accept me, they worship Shifters and believe that we are gods in human form, sent here to protect" she explained.

The others nodded and Mrs. Reade walked towards the village, one of the men turning around and smiling at her.

"Norma, it's been too long" he said.

Mrs. Reade smiled and put her forehead to his and began to ask him questions, while Thomas looked around the other three people.

"Anyone know what they're saying?" He asked.

The truck beside them rumbled.

"She is explaining that Alexx has gone missing and she is describing Alexx to him" The new man said.

Thomas nodded and then watched as Mrs. Reade came back to them.

"They have Alexx here and it's not good news. He said that a couple of the tribe found her laying in the desert, she was dehydrated and barely alive, they have rehydrated her but she has a broken heart" she explained.

At hearing this, the newest man walked up to the other man, the truck following a little. He grabbed the other man's arms and shook him a little.

"Where is Alexx?" He demanded.

Mrs. Reade came up to him and put her hand on his forearm.

"Making demands will get you nowhere" she said.

She then looked at the man who had put his hand on her own arm.

"Alexx is with the doctor, she is very ill" he said.

Will stepped forward and put his hand on the new man's shoulder.

"Hide, Mrs. Reade's right, demanding isn't going to get you anywhere" he said.

He then looked at the tribesman and smiled slightly.

"Can we see her?" He asked.

The tribesman looked at him and nodded.

"You are her father?" He questioned.

Will nodded and the man motioned for him to come with him. The army man nodded and followed him towards the shack.

"She is awake, but try not to talk to her too much" he said.

Again Will nodded and the man showed him into the shack. Will entered the building and his face fell at the sight of his adoptive daughter laying on the floor, covered in blankets and looking like death warmed up. Tears gathered in his eyes as he went over and sat next to her, picking up her hand and kissing it. She woke up and smiled a watery smile at him.

"I'm sorry" she whispered.

Will shook his head and sniffled a little.

"No, it's alright Alexx. I talked to Mrs. Reade and Mr. Moore, they explained everything. Why didn't you tell me that Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet were your mates?" He asked.

Alexx swallowed thickly and sighed a little.

"I didn't think you'd be happy about it" she said.

Will shook his head again and held her hand up to his lips again, before resting his cheek on it.

"I'm not, but if denying you your mates is going to kill you, I have no choice" he stated.

The Shifter femme nodded and the doctor told Will that it as time for him to go. Will kissed Alexx's hand once more and then left the shack, wiping his face as he did. He then walked over to the tribe leader and took his hand. Looking at him.

"I wanna take her home" he said.

The tribe leader nodded and looked at the truck.

"Not in that I hope?" He asked.

Will shook his head and wiped his face.

"No, I have a friend who has a fire and rescue hummer, he can take her" he replied.

The tribe leader nodded and Will nodded too before looking at Ironhide.

"Contact Ratchet ASAP, he's the only on who can take her back to base" he said.

Ironhide nodded and walked back to the truck.

 **~Shifting Hearts** ~

**(Ironhide)**

Getting into his alt form, he thought back to the conversation he, Optimus, Jazz and Ratchet were having before Alexx had interrupted them.

_**~Flashback~** _

_**Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet stood in the medbay having been called there by Optimus for an important discussion.** _

_**"What's up Optimus?" Jazz had asked.** _

_**The larger mech had cycled his intakes before speaking.** _

_**"I have detected a difference in Alexx's behaviour towards us, it's unsettling" he replied.** _

_**Ratchet nodded and hummed.** _

_**"Whenever she is near any one of us, her pheromones spike through the roof, her spark beats increase, her intakes increase and her core temperature rises. According to this planet's internet, these are the symptoms of arousal" he said.** _

_**Ironhide and Jazz looked at him and nodded.** _

_**"I noticed dat when I get a 'uman femme come up ta me, she growls an' her optic change" Jazz said.** _

_**Optimus nodded and rubbed his optics in a human gesture.** _

_**"I am unaware of Shifter biology and behaviour patterns but the scent of her arousal affects me greatly. Yet the scent of any other femme's arousal does not bother me" he stated.** _

_**The medic looked at Optimus and the others.** _

_**"We cannot enter into a relationship with her Optimus, she is human and will only live for less than a fraction of the time we do. It will not be fair on her or us" he said.** _

_**That's when Ironhide piped up.** _

_**"Why is it that her scent only affects us? The other mechs don't seem to be bothered by her scent" he said.** _

_**Ratchet shuttered his optics and shook his helm.** _

_**"I am unsure Ironhide. I find it perplexing that whenever another human male is near her, I feel my spark pulse lasted and I feel anger towards that male" he uttered.** _

_**Optimus, Jazz and Ironhide nodded, concurring with what the medic had said.** _

_**"What're we gonna do den?" Jazz asked.** _

_**Optimus cycled his intakes.** _

_**"We must protect her, if we instigate a relationship with Alexx, the Decepticons will target her. I will not put her or any of our human allies at any more risk than they already are" he said.** _

_**~End Flashback~** _

Ironhid cycled his intakes. So much for protecting her from Decepticon attack, she was at more risk of offlining without them as her mates than she was with a Decepticon attack.

**:Ironhide to Ratchet:**

**:Ratchet, what is it Ironhide?:**

**:We have located Alexx:**

**:Where?:**

**:A village in the desert five miles out of Mission City. She is...unwell Ratchet:**

**:Frag, what caused it?:**

Ironhide cycled his intakes.

**:You are not going to like the answer:**

**:Just tell me Ironhide:**

The gruff mech paused for a few seconds.

**:Ironhide:**

**:We caused it:**

**:Excuse me?:**

**:We caused it because we did not accept her as our mates:**

Ratchet was silent for a few moments.

**:Frag it all to pit! Is she alright?:**

**:If we do not accept her as our mates soon Ratchet, she will offline:**

Ratchet cursed so much that Ironhide was even shocked.

**:Can you bring her back to base?:**

**:That is why I am contacting you. The leader of this...tribe I believe they called it...will only allow us to move her if we have someone with the adequate vehicle and medical knowledge to do so:**

**:I am on my way, I must inform Optimus of these events:**

**:Understood, Ironhide out:**

He exited his alt mode and walked up to Will.

"Ratchet is on his way, he needs to inform Optimus first" he said.

Will nodded and then walked back to the truck, prompting Ironhide to follow him. The human then looked right at the mech.

"Why didn't you accept her as soon as she told you?" He asked.

Ironhide cycled his intakes.

"Optimus feared that entering into a relationship with her would make her a target for Decepticon attack. He wasn't willing to risk her life" he replied.

Will snorted and motioned to the shack.

"With what I saw in there, Decepticons would be doing her a favour by putting her out of her misery...misery that  _you_ and Optimus and Jazz and Ratchet caused" he said.

Ironhide cycled his intakes and walked away, before walking back.

"We did not know what was going to happen to Alexx when we declined her, she did not divulge to us what would happen" he said.

Will nodded and then rubbed his face.

"Well now you know" he said.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Half an hour later/Ratchet)**

Ratchet arrived in half the time it took for Ironhide and the others to arrive, thanks to his sirens, people moved out of the way for him. As soon as he arrived, his holoform was active and he was out of his alt form as fast as he could. Ironhide told him where Alexx was and because the shack was less than the optimum range for the holoform, the medic was able to get a gurney out of the back of his alt form and took it to the shack. What he saw when he got in there almost made his spark cease to beat. Alexx was so pale that she could pass for a cadaver, it was only because of his scans that he knew she was alive. Quickly, with the help of the tribe doctor, he got her onto the gurney and covered her with the blankets, opting to hurry back towards his alt form.

Once there, he got the gurney into the back of his alt form and then looked around. He scanned the two people who weren't the tribesman and found that one of them was a Shifter like Alexx. Taking a deep intake, he walked over to the older Shifter femme.

"You are a Shifter yes?" He asked.

The female nodded and Ratchet put his holographic hand onto her arm and walked away from the others. Once at a safe distance he began to speak.

"We caused this?" He questioned.

A solemn look passed the femme's face and she nodded.

"Alpha Shifters can take up to ten mates, but if the Shifter's first chosen mate rejects them, they will fall into a depression, its like a heartbreak, but a physical and real heartbreak, not one that human women say they have. This heartbreak will actually kill the Shifter" she explained.

Ratchet nodded and pinched his holographic nose.

"Accepting her as a mate will make her better?" He inquired.

The elder Shifter chuckled.

"This requires a little more than just acceptance dear, not only must you verbally accept to being her mate, but you must consummate it too" she answered.

The medic's holo eyes widened considerably.

"Excuse me?" He asked.

The Shifter smiled and walked over to the back of the alt form, opening the doors and looking up at Alexx.

"You must have intercourse with her. After that she will perk up and keep doing so until she has mated with all of her mates. Then the bond is sealed and she will return to her normal self" she replied.

Ratchet looked at her before he nodded. If interfacing with her would help her then that is what he would do. He looked at the femme.

"When?" He asked.

The elder woman gave a slight friendly curl of her lips.

"As soon as you deem her well enough" she said.

The mech nodded and then thanked her, closing his rear doors and looking to Ironhide who nodded and told Will that they had to go now. Ironhide also told Ratchet that first he would need to drop the male and the female off where he picked them up, then he would arrive at the base, Ratchet nodded and got into his alt form, starting up his engine and peeling out of there, only putting his sirens on when he got to the city. All the time he was driving, his holoform was in the back with Alexx, holding her hand and talking to her. He cared for her greatly, if he'd known that refusing to acknowledge being her mate would almost offline her, he would've accepted right then and there, now...seeing her like this made his spark ache in his chest and he realised...if she offlined, he would too. The realisation struck him like a lightning bolt and he had to pull over, there was only one reason that he would feel this way and he couldn't believe that it was possible. Shaking his helm, he got back on the road and made the final leg of the journey back to the base.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Back at base)**

Once Ratchet arrived back at the base, he didn't stop to talk to anyone, instead he went straight to the medbay and stopped by the human sized berth. His holoform then carried Alexx out of his alt form and put her in the bed, covering her up and hooking her up to the machines he had there, before pulling a chair up to her side. He sat with her, taking her hand in his own again, looking at it and stroking it before pressing his lips to the back of it. Cycling his intakes, he then rested his cheek against the hand and looked at her.

"I have been a fool Alexx...I believed that refusing to acknowledge that we were your mates would keep you out of harms way. But I see now it's done the opposite. I believe myself, Jazz, Ironhide and Optimus are in a...catch twenty three. We enter into a relationship with you and we may as well paint a target on your back for the Decepticons, but then...we refuse to enter into a relationship with you and you offline from a broken spark" he whispered.

He put his forehead on her hand and once again cycled his intakes.

"I don't know what to do" he said.

All was quiet for a minute, before he felt a hand drop on his head. Looking up sharply, he saw Alexx's eyes open a little and she swallowed thickly.

"C-catch twenty two" she whispered.

Her voice was hoarse, but right at that moment Ratchet didn't care. He smiled at her and she put her hand to his face, stroking his cheek lightly before dropping her hand. Ratchet grabbed it and held it up to his lips.

"I realised something on the way back from the village you were in" he said.

Alexx looked at him and licked her lips before swallowing thickly again.

"What?" She asked.

The mech leaned in and put his lips next to her ear.

"You are my mate Alexx" he said.

He pulled back and looked at her, she seemed to be smiling and the heart monitor that was only registering a slow heartbeat sped up a few beats. He looked at it and smiled.

"I was wrong to refuse you as a mate, I realised that I love you Alexx...for a while I did not want to believe it, but now I do. I love you Alexx and I accept that I am your mate" he said.

At this, the heart monitor sped up a few more beats and then he felt a hand come up to his collar and drag him downwards. Before he knew what was happening, dry and chapped lips were pressing against his own and without further ado, he began to respond to the kiss, all the while removing the pads from her chest, ignoring the way the machine flatlined from a missing heartbeat. He climbed onto the bed, straddling her as he kissed her back. With a heartbeat as strong as what hers was now, he deemed her fit enough to do this. He got off of her, breaking the kiss and pulling her shirt over her head, he helped her to get fully undressed and then he zapped his clothing off, getting into bed with her, he started kissing her again, his lips moving from her lips, to her jawline, to her cheeks, to her eyes, her forehead and back to her jawline, before he began to kiss lower.

The scratchy groans that were coming from the femme beneath him had his spike rock hard in mere seconds, well...it felt like seconds, but still. He made his way back up to her lips as his hand travelled downwards and slipped between her sacred lips, seeing how moist she was. He groaned at the feeling and the scent had his spike aching. Pulling back, he used his hand to guide himself to her entrance and looked into her eyes...those beautiful hazel eyes that where they were once dull and had no spark in them, now had the glittering of a small spark in them. She nodded and he pushed into her, groaning at how tight she was. Over in the corner, his root form had his spike in his servo and was slowly pumping away at it as his holoform began to make love to the Shifter femme who had claimed his spark in such a short amount of time.

His movements were unrushed, every thrust inside her was done carefully and with every intent of enjoying the feeling. As a medic, he knew that humans were soft and squishy, but he had no idea that they could be this tight, this hot, this wet. His groans mingled with hers, lips smacked against one another and flesh rubbed over flesh, he lowered his head and arched his back, taking one of her nipples into his mouth and softly biting on it while he rubbed his tongue over it. The sounds she made at such an action spurned him on and caused him to buck a little irregularly into her, just this action alone caused a started gasp to erupt from her. Though he stopped, unsure...

"Are you alright?" He asked.

Alexx nodded and wrapped her legs around his waist, moving her hips on his, giving him the hint to carry on. He did so without hesitation, rolling his hips up inside her and deciding to try what he'd just done, he purposely bucked irregularly inside her and the startled gasps and strangled moans that came from her were like music to his ears. He knew that it wouldn't be long until he reached overload, but he was determined to get her there before he fell off that cliff himself. His hand meandered down her body, reaching the apex of her thighs, finding that little pleasure nub and beginning to tease it in time with his thrusts. At the same time he leaned down and took her nipple into his mouth, biting, grazing, sucking, licking it until he felt her walls start to flutter around him, that's when he sped up his thrusts and it wasn't long until she was practically screaming in pleasure as she climaxed around him. The feeling of her walls contracting so tightly around his human spike sent him into overload. His real body stiffening up as clear fluids shot out of the tip of his spike.

He leaned against the wall, willing his intakes to regulate again as his holoform dropped his coolant covered forehead against Alexx's chest. He then looked up at her and kissed her, feeling her hand run through his hair at the action. She then pulled away a little.

"I love you Ratchet" she said.

The mech smiled and kissed her again, backing off so that his lips were just above hers.

"I love you too Alexx" he whispered.

He watched as she closed her eyes and drifted into a nice and content sleep, before smiling and putting the pads back on her chest, registering her heartbeat again, which was relatively normal considering the activities they'd just been doing. Giving one last smile, he removed himself from her and flopped to the side, pulling her into him and closing his eyes, a content smile upon his features as he did.


	12. Chapter 12

**(A Few Days Later)**

A few days had passed and Alexx had improved dramatically after Ratchet had accepted being her mate. Though she wasn't fit enough to be up and about, the monitors that she'd been hooked up too had now been disconnected. She was currently eating a bowl of soup that Sarah had sent in with Will and said man was sat next to her eating a similar bowl of soup. He was glad that Alexx had improved, but he was surprised by how fast she had improved, though he guessed that it was something to do with being a Shifter. Also in the last few days General Morshower had acquired the hangar in Diego Garcia and had given the team the go ahead to move there, so with everyone already packed, all they had to do was just load it onto the planes and get out of there. Alexx had gone with Optimus, under strict orders that she wasn't to do any strenuous activity until he could monitor her vitals, she hadn't minded, with Optimus being one of her mates too...it was calming to be with him. So now she was sat in the cab of the Autobot leader, on their way to the new base in Diego Garcia.

"How are you feeling Alexx?" The large mech asked.

He activated his holoform and looked over at the femme, who smiled at him and pulled her legs up to her chest, hugging them almost.

"I'm alright, still a little weak, got a bit of a cough..." She said.

As if to accentuate this, a very rattly cough forced its way out of her and once she was done, she swallowed thickly, but then smiled again at the mech.

"But nothing too bad. I feel a little better" she said.

The mech nodded and she looked out the front window, there wasn't much to see except plane interior, but it stopped her from saying anything to the mech beside her. True enough, without her other mates accepting the fact that they  _were_ her mates, she would become ill again until the others accepted. But she didn't want to think about that, she was happy to think about some other things, like what Ratchet had told her when she had woken up.

_**~Flashback~** _

_**Alexx woke up with the feeling of someone hugging her, turning over in the arms she was happy to see that Ratchet was there, looking down at her with his almost glowing blue eyes. A smile made its way across her face and he leaned down, pressing a kiss to her nose.** _

_**"Morning handsome" she said.** _

_**The blush upon the cheeks of her mech made her chuckle and she kissed his lips, which he responded to, until he pulled away.** _

_**"Why'd you do it?" Alexx asked.** _

_**Ratchet looked down at her and his face showed confusion so Alexx sighed and curled into him more.** _

_**"Why'd you accept?" She questioned.** _

_**The mech lifted her face up so that he could look into her eyes and he cycled his intakes.** _

_**"William went looking for you, he spoke to the other femme Shifter and the other human male and they explained to Ironhide what had happened. The femme took them to the village that you were in, but they couldn't move you until I got there. I spoke to the femme myself and she said that unless we want you to offline, we must accept you as mates and interface with you" he said.** _

_**Alexx looked at his face and searched his eyes before nodding and then she sighed too.** _

_**"So why didn't you accept in the first place?" She asked.** _

_**The mech cycled his intakes yet again and rolled onto his back, letting Alexx's head rest on his chest.** _

_**"Optimus was worried that initiating a relationship with you would make you more of a target for the Decepticons. If they knew that you were the mate of not only a medic, weapons specialist, saboteur but a Prime as well, they would stop at nothing to get to you, it would destroy Optimus if you were injured" he explained.** _

_**Alexx nodded and ran her hand through his fine chest hair, before moving her head to his shoulder.** _

_**"So you didn't accept to...save me" she stated.** _

_**Ratchet nodded and then looked into her eyes.** _

_**"Indeed, though it seems as if not accepting you put you in more danger than accepting you would" he said.** _

_**~End Flashback~** _

It had made a lot of sense to her and she was grateful that the mechs had tried to protect her, but she couldn't deny the pull she still felt to all of them, including Ratchet. They'd explained about their war and how many lives it had taken and she had to admit, she was worried. If the Decepticons were as bad as the mechs made them out to be, any one of her mates could be taken and that would kill her. She looked over to Optimus' holoform and exhaled slowly, closing her eyes and leaning back against the seat, maybe getting a bit of sleep would help her regain some of her strength.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Optimus)**

Looking over at the femme while she was recharging, he felt his spark pull. It hurt him to deny being her mate and once he'd found out from Ratchet just what their refusal had done to her, he was sure that his spark had stopped for a few nanoseconds. All he had wanted to do was protect the femme from the Decepticons, but then Ironhide had told him what Will had said, with how Ratchet explained she'd been found, he had to admit that a Decepticon attack would be more dignified than her offlining because of them. He cycled his intakes and stood up, carefully gathering the femme up in his arms and moving to the back of his cab, placing her on the little sleeper and covering her with the blanket there.

He watched her for a few minutes, before he swept some of her hair away from her optics and found a smile creeping onto his face at the sight of her. He couldn't imagine life without her and that thought made him stop and as realisation hit him, when he was near her, he felt a happiness that he'd never felt before and when she had almost offlined, when Will had told them that she'd gone missing...sorrow had filled the happiness. He'd experienced something like this once before, with Elita, but never had it been this strong. Perhaps she was his mate after all, and if that was the case, he had no right to deny her such a thing, though he couldn't quite understand how he could mate with a Shifter, or even a human for that matter.

Once again the mech cycled his intakes and deactivated his holoform, his cab was already heated to a temperature that humans deemed comfortable and while they flew to Diego Garcia he couldn't do much else, so he slipped into a light recharge cycle, happy to have the femme with him.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(A Few Hours Later/Normal)**

The planes landed and the mechs aalong with the humans were soon on their way to the hanger that had been procured for them. Alexx had since woken up and was once again sitting in the passenger seat of the semi watching the scenery pass. Optimus, having activated his holoform sat there watching the femme, his lips curled into a smile every time hers did and from that point on, he knew he'd not be able to deny her anymore. But he wanted his acceptance to be special, Ratchet had informed him that when he accepted to being her mate, he would need to interface with her too and he didn't think that the road was the best place for that, so he would do it later.

It wasn't long until they reached the new base and immediately places were being built for the humans and the things that had been packed were being unpacked, the chef was immediately in the kitchen area and sorting out the appliances and the counters and creating an area for the mess hall. General Morshower had sent some computers, which will be used by both the General and the NEST team to talk to one another via video feed. He also informed Will that the training for the NEST team would start tomorrow and that he would be the leader of the human faction in the team. With Alexx having evacuated Optimus' cab, the mech was free to transform, which he had done and he helped with some of the moving things.

Ratchet had secured an area which he would use as a med bay and the human berths as well as the cybertronian berths had been placed there too. Once that was done, Will had informed him that before training began, he would need to examine every member of the team, which included the mechs too. Will had also spoken to General Morshower about Sam, the boy who had helped in the battle in Mission City and the General had said that the boy was going to go to college and that the government would fully fund it because he helped in Mission City. Soon, with everyone helping, the base was like the other one and everyone could relax, though Optimus wasn't looking to relax. He walked out of the base and looked around for Alexx, who was sat atop one of the human residences that had been put in place for temporary measures until they were sure that they were staying here.

The Shifter femme turned around at the sound of the large mech coming towards her and she smiled, which of course caused Optimus to smile too. Once he got to where she was, he held out a palm to her and she climbed upon it, so he could bring her face to face with him.

"I believe I have something to tell you Alexx" he said.

He scanned her and was a little worried about what he found. Her heart rate had slowed down a little, it was now just under the average human heart rate, with intervals of increased heart rate...a quick search online told him that this was called an irregular heart rate, which he was sure she never had before. He cleared his fuel lines and smiled down at her.

"Alexx Lennox, I accept that I am your mate" he said.

He scanned her again and found that her heart rate had climbed a little and though it was still a little irregular, it was what was considered normal for a human. The smile that lit her face up like a thousand watts in a lightbulb was contagious and he found himself smiling brightly too. Slowly, he put her down on the ground and transformed, activating his holoform and opening his passenger door. His holoform came around to her and lifted her up.

"As per instructions of Ratchet, you are not to do too much strenuous activity unless he is there" he said.

He helped her into his cabin and closed the door before disappearing. Then he drove into the base and towards the med bay that had been set up. Once there, he contacted Ratchet via comms.

_**:Ratchet, I intend to mate with Alexx, will the Med bay suffice?:** _

_**:Yes Optimus, there are berths here that you may use:** _

The large mech chuckled slightly.

_**:They won't be necessary Ratchet, I have a sleeper in my cab that I will make use of:** _

_**:Very well. How is she?"** _

_**:Her spark is beating a little irregularly, but it is normal. It is the cough that I am worried about:** _

Ratchet looked at the semi and furrowed his optic ridges.

_**:Has it become worse?:** _

_**:No...but I do not wish to make it worse by interfacing with her:** _

_**:I don't believe it will make it worse Optimus, if anything interfacing with her will make it better:** _

_**:Very well:** _

With that done, the mech activated his holoform again and looked at the femme. He reached over and took one of her hands iinto his own.

"I apologise for denying you at first Alexx, I was worried" he said.

Alexx smiled and crawled into his lap, straddling him and pressing her lips to his. When she pulled away, she pressed her forehead to his.

"I know, Ratchet told me. I'm glad you care for me enough to want to protect me from the Decepticons" she said.

Optimus smiled at her and she leaned in and pressed her lips against his again. She shuffled against him and smiled when he groaned, feeling his excitement through his jeans. With that, Optimus stood up with her still in his lap and moved to the back of the cab, laying her down on the sleeper and holding himself over her. Slowly, he brought his mouth down to hers and began to kiss her deeply and passionately but with a carefulness that was almost as if she were made of China. Once he'd explored her mouth, he began to explore her jawline and her throat before making his way back up to her mouth. But he didn't stop there, instead he went to her nose and kissed that, before he went up to her eyes, when she closed them he kissed her eyelids and then her forehead and then her cheeks. Then he kissed her lips again and slowly began to unbutton her shirt, kissing down her throat, to the valley of her breasts. Once her shirt was undone, he pushed it over her shoulders and helped her sit up so that he could take the shirt off. With that done, he went to work on her bra, unclipping it and removing it from her person.

Pretty soon, she was naked underneath him and he sat back on his haunches to look her over, she lay there, her lips parted and bruised from kissing and her body...to him...was absolutely perfect. He got up and unlike what Ratchet did, he began to slowly remove his own clothing, the items disappearing when they hit the floor and once he too was naked, he climbed back on the bed, her scent aroused him more than anything and knowing that she wasn't a virgin anymore, he made sure she was wet enough for him and he positioned himself between her legs, using his hand to guide himself to her entrance. Slowly he pushed into her and waited as she got used to his size, before he slowly began to thrust into her, his eyes locked on hers as he did. Slowly he made love to her, his movements unrushed, though the sounds she was making were causing him to have to fight his body, the noises making him want to thrust hard and fast into her, but...he liked to think he had more control than that.

It wasn't long until he could feel her inner muscles fluttering around his length and he sped up just a little bit, not enough to bring her so much pleasure that she climaxed, but enough to cause said climax to slowly build. When she started squirming underneath him, he hiked the thrusts up a little more, now willing her to climax before he did and he soon got his wish, she orgasmed around him with a loud and long moan, her inner walls gripping him so tightly that he fell over the cliff too and shot his fluids into her. Thankfully, they were harmless, just simple mech fluids. Slowly he stopped thrusting and he held himself over her, watching how she continued to squirm until her spasms had stopped and she opened her eyes. When she did that, Optimus gasped, her eyes seemed to glow and he leaned down to kiss her, before he removed himself from her and lay down beside her.

"I love you Optimus" she said.

Optimus smiled and pulled her to him, pressing a kiss to the back of her neck.

"And I love you. Now rest" he stated.

Alexx nodded and closed her eyes, falling into a peaceful and content sleep.


	13. Chapter 13

**(Somewhere in the desert)**

The wind howled and dust flew everywhere as it blew across a baron landscape, but amid the sound of the wind was the roaring of an engine. An old land rover sped down the road, on either side of the black pathway was dry dirt, so pale it could have been mistaken for sand, inside the land rover were three men, they were all ex-army and they all had one thing in mind...revenge. They were heading towards a derelict prison just up the road, it was a maximum security area, but after the events of two years ago, the security had been increased.

Soon, the vehicle arrived at the first gate and the man there nodded to let them through and they moved onto the next gate, where the second man nodded and they were let through. The vehicle then drove up to the compound and stopped, three doors opened and the three men stepped out. One of the men lead the way into the building, punching in codes if and when they were needed and sorting out the retina scans too. The lights in the building flickered every so often and the sounds of terrified and sorrow filled cries could be heard. The third man looked around at a particularly loud cry but the other two laughed at him.

"You're gonna have to get used to that if you're workin' for us now" one said.

The third man glared at them and stayed where he was as they walked off. He shook his head and crossed his arms.

"Let's get one thing straight you overconfident dicks, I'm not  _workin'_ for you" he said.

The two men stopped themselves and turned to face him, just as he walked by them shoving them with his shoulder as he went. They looked at one another and then looked back at the man who was waiting at the next door.

"Oh believe me mate, you'll be workin' for us...the boss ain't gonna take no for an answer. He never does" the other man said.

The third man rolled his eyes and motioned to the door, which the first man came up to and opened. Once they were through that door, they ascended several flights of stairs until they came to the wardens office. The second man looked at the third man and held up his hand.

"Stay here until you're called" he said.

He and the first man then walked into the office, closing the door behind them and leaving the third man out there, with no-one watching him.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(In the office)**

The two men stood in front of a desk that had a balding man sat behind it, they fidgeted a lot, they were nervous. After the events of two years ago, their boss wasn't happy with them and one wrong move could cause them to be put in a room with one of the  _things_ that they were breeding. The first man cleared his throat in hopes of getting the balding man to look up at them, but it didn't work, instead the man spoke without raising his head from what he was writing.

"Did you find her?" He asked.

His voice was deep, but it was also as if he was speaking through his nose. The two men looked at one another and then looked back at the man, each finding something to fiddle with on their person. The pen stopped moving on the paper that was in front of the balding man.

"I take it that by your silence the answer is no" he stated.

He glanced up and the two men swallowed.

"Sorry boss, she's covered her tracks well" the first man said.

Blue eyes turned hard and the men shrank back a little in fear, that look was never a good look, especially coming from the boss.

"No,  _she_ hasn't covered her tracks well. Her bastard parents covered her tracks well. This is why I told you to watch them!" He said.

Well...the last part was yelled and the two men shrank back even more.

"We're sorry boss, we didn't know what they were planning, hell we didn't even know that she was pregnant" the second man said.

The boss looked at him and narrowed his eyes.

"What do you think I let you join for, my own amusement? It's your  _job_ to know what each and every one of these fucking freaks are planning, it's your  _job_ to know if one of them is pregnant or not" he yelled.

The men nodded and fiddled more with whatever they were fiddling with, sighing in relief when the boss sat back down again. He rubbed his eyes and then sighed himself. The first man looked at the second man and motioned towards the boss, the second man only mirrored his movements, making the boss look up at them.

"What are you not telling me?" He demanded.

The first man took a breath and stepped forward.

" _We_ don't know where she is..." He began.

The other man finished his sentence, unable to contain his excitement.

"...but we got someone who does" he said.

The first man glared at the second man, who shrank back and bowed his head. The first man then looked back at the boss who had one eyebrow raised.

"So...where is he?" He asked.

The second man walked to the door and opened it, motioning for someone to come in. The third man entered the room and looked around.

"Nice place you got here, does it cost much to run?" He asked.

The boss just looked at him and gave a bit of a smirk, standing up and leaning over the table.

"Cents I assure you. Who are you?" He questioned.

The third man shook his head.

"No, no, no. The question isn't who I am, it's what I can do for you" he replied.

The boss raised his eyebrow again and sat down slowly, folding his hands in front of him on the desk.

"Okay Mr..." He began.

The third man smirked.

"Hollier" he said.

The boss man nodded and leaned back in his chair.

"Okay Mr. Hollier, what is it you can do for us?" He asked.

Hollier smirked and helped himself to a seat in front of the boss's desk.

"Well, I can not only give you the little freak that you're after, but I can give you the people she holds dear, another freak and where the little freak lives too" he said.

The boss leaned forward again and a small smile curled the corners of his lips.

"And in return?" He asked.

Hollier leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest.

"I want my name left out of it, I got a family to feed and if I get dishonourably discharged, I ain't gonna have me retirement fund" he said.

The boss smirked and nodded.

"Deal...but...you tell us  _everything_ we need to know about Alexx" he stated.

Hollier nodded and the boss nodded too.

"Well, start talkin'" he said.

Hollier took a breath and he started to tell the other man everything he knew.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

Once he'd finished talking, the boss seemed to be very happy as he had a huge smile on his face.

"This is just brilliant. Now we can rectify what we lost two years ago and what's better is tthat she's already reached sexual maturity" he said.

The other two men seemed to be happy too, this would be a chance for them to prove to their boss that they weren't completely incompetent, that they could actually do something right for a change. Hollier stood up and gave a bit of a shrug.

"That's all I know. You're gonna have trouble getting onto base though, especially if you bring tweedletwit and tweedletwat with you" he said.

He motioned to the other two men while saying the two names and the boss looked up at him and tilted his head to the side.

"What do you suggest?" He asked.

Hollier shrugged.

"Two men with proper military experience. I'm surprised these two even lasted a  _day_ in the barracks. You need two fully qualified men, who can sneak in and sneak out" he answered.

The boss brought his hand to his chin and nodded, before waving his hands in a 'get out' motion. The two men took Hollier out of the room, while the boss sat in his chair and thought. He did have a few men who were well trained, who could get in and get out without being noticed or suspected. A victorious smirk appeared on his lips, finally he could have the one thing he'd needed here since he started his army, an Alpha who could mate with any member of the  _Panthera_ family and still produce offspring. Of course, offspring coming from an Alpha would be strong soldiers, just what he needed. He leaned forward and picked up the phone.

"Dylan, Stuart...I have a job for you" he said.


	14. Chapter 14

**(A Few Weeks Later)**

A few weeks had passed and in those few weeks Will had brought Alexx a new phone so that she could contact him or the mechs if and when she needed to. As soon as she figured out how to use it, she'd instantly downloaded an app which would allow her to learn French, though when asked about it all she said was 'wait and see'. She had also made her way into the city and popped into a party store to order a costume, see Will had let slip to her that the guys on base were planning a Halloween party so they could show the mechs what it was all about and he'd also told her that he'd managed to hijack a house in a busy street for the trick or treating experience.

To say that she was excited would be an understatement, Halloween might be a few months away, but still she couldn't fight the buzz she had running through her veins at the thought of dressing up and sitting in a spookily decorated house for a few hours, even if it was to scare the wits out of children as they came and knocked on the door. Today, she'd gone back to the party store to check the status of her costume, having paid for it to be custom made, she was hoping it would be finished in a few weeks so she could try it on and then take it back to base and hide it. She had to admit, it was a bit of a struggle to determine who or what she was going to dress up as for Halloween, but soon enough one idea won over the other and she'd ordered the costume. She talked to the clerk who had told her that the manufacturer was having problems getting the material for the costume, that it would be another few weeks before it came, though the man had assured her that it would be delivered in time for Halloween.

Once she'd finished in the party store, Alexx decided to take a shortcut back to base, which included going through a load of trees. However, as she walked, her sensitive hearing picked up the sound of a dog, whining and barking and her first instinct was to run, but then she stopped, from what she'd heard about the ASTS, their dogs barked aggressively, not with frightened undertones to it. Curiosity getting the better of her, she followed the noise, coming up to a little cottage-like building, the noise was coming from inside. Slowly, she walked up to the door and pushed it open. She hesitated for a moment, before she walked inside and followed the noise to the back, where from the shadows, she saw a man advancing towards a now cowering dog, he had a stick in his hands.

Instantly, she felt a headache come on and she went to leave, but as soon as it came, it went and she looked back to the man and growled loudly. The man stopped in his tracks and the dog moved farther into the corner to try and get away from the human, who was now looking towards the door. The man put the stick down and instead picked up a large machete-like blade, holding it out.

"Who's there?" He asked.

He had a gruff voice and when no-one answered, he started to shake, the blade rattling in his hand. Alexx smirked from the shadows and inhaled long and deep, before the smirk settled onto her features again. She knew the man couldn't see her and she used that to her advantage.

"Scared are you?" She questioned.

The man looked straight at where she was standing and she emitted a dark chuckle as she saw his eyes widen considerably. Slowly, she stepped half out of the shadows, so he could see her, but her face was still shrouded in the shadow of the doorway.

"Wh-who're you?" The man asked.

Another dark chuckle escaped her, before it stopped and she looked at the cowering dog, she could see the fear in the dogs eyes, it took a lot of beatings to put that kind of fear into a dogs eyes and she growled, long and deep. Slowly, she stepped out of the shadows and looked the man right in the eyes, her entire body had changed, she was thinner and more toned, she stood a few inches taller, her hair was spikier and her jaw was more narrow. But what had changed the most, was the colour of her eyes...they were no longer hazel, instead they were jade green. She glared at the man and moving slowly, she walked over to the cowering dog, who in fear lashed out at her, but she didn't pay it any mind, she continued to reach for the chain around the dogs neck and carefully slipped it off. The dog however stayed where it was and slowly she brought her other hand up to pet it on the head.

Carefully she stood up and with the chain still in her hands, she turned to face the man her eyes green pools of fire. The man turned towards her and opened his mouth, but she let loose a ferocious growl that even made the dog yap in fear.

"Where do you get off hurting  _innocent_ animals?" She hissed.

She watched as the man narrowed his eyes at her and she growled again, less ferociously this time and where the growl didn't scare the dog, it definitely scared the man. He stood back a little before holding the knife up to her.

"You have no right to barge into my house and tell me what to do. The bloody dog killed one of my hens!" He yelled.

Alexx growled and pulled at the chain so hard that it snapped right on one of the links. Startled, the man jumped back and looked from the chain to her face and back to the chain again.

"Did you intend to whip the dog until you killed it or were you going to slit his throat with that knife?" She asked.

The man didn't say anything, instead he just kept looking at the chain and then her face, before he held the knife up again, shaking more this time.

"What are you? S-some kind of freak?" He inquired.

Alexx raised her top lip at the word  _freak_ and dropped the chain. She walked towards him and within a few seconds had his knife pressed against his throat with his back pressed against the wall.

"I heard your dog whining and barking in terror, that fear in his eyes, it takes a lot of beatings to put that kind of fear in a dog. You weren't beating him because he killed a chicken, you were beating him because you're a violent drunk with no-one to take it out on, except the dog. People like you disgust me" she hissed.

The man shook even more and soon there was the tell tale noise of liquids hitting the floor and she glanced down to see that the man had just soiled himself. She smirked and looked up at him, a murderous mischief in her eyes.

"Here's what I'm gonna do and here's what  _you're_ gonna do.  _You're_ gonna apologise, and I'm gonna spare your life. Deal?" She asked.

The man nodded enthusiastically and she stepped back a little, still holding the blade to his throat.

"Apologise" she said.

The man swallowed thickly, his Adams Apple bobbing against the knife as he licked his lips.

"I-I'm sorry" he stuttered.

Alexx rolled her eyes and growled.

"Not to me you buffoon, to the dog" she stated.

The man just looked at her and his eyebrows furrowed.

"W-what?" He asked.

She growled loudly again.

"Apologise!" She yelled.

The man jumped and swallowed again.

"I-I'm s-sorry Stanley!" He wailed.

Alexx looked over at the dog, who looked still scared, before she looked back at the man.

"Well...you apologised" she said.

The man nodded again and once again swallowed thickly.

"S-so y-yoiu're gonna spa-spare me ri-right?" He questioned.

The femme seemed to think it over, making a little humming noise as she did, before she looked at the man with the mischief gone but the murderous intent still there.

"Mmmmm nope" she said.

The man started breathing even heavier and he grabbed onto her wrist.

"But you said..." He started.

Alexx chortled and then looked right into his eyes.

"I lied" she said.

She then pressed a little harder and dragged the knife across the man's throat, within seconds blood started pouring out of the gaping wound and he brought a hand up instinctively. As he fell to the ground, she caught him, the blood soaking her beige shirt as she did.

"There, there...it won't last long" she crooned.

Then she stood up and dropped the body as she did. With blood over her hands she turned towards the dog and smiled.

"Come Stanley" she said.

The dog whined and came up to her, she wiped her hands off on her black trousers and crouched down, rubbing the dog behind the ears. She then got up and walked out of the house, the golden Labrador behind her.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(A few hours later)**

Alexx woke to the feel of something wet on her face, she opened her eyes and saw the grey sky and rain droplets falling towards her. Slowly she sat up and as she did she heard the groan of a dog, this made her look to her left side to see a golden lab looking at her with his head on his paws. She reached out to him and he sat up quickly and backed away from her, so she pulled her hand away and looked at it, seeing it covered with almost washed off blood. She looked around and her eyes caught a note that was stuck to a tree with what looked like a masonry nail. Looking back at the dog, she got up and walked over to the note, picking it off the tree, because of the canopy, it was barely even wet and the writing was definitely hers.

"His name is Stanley" she read.

The dog barked and she turned towards him, he was laid down again, his brown eyes looking up at her. She read the note again and looked at the dog, quickly putting two and two together.

"Your name is Stanley?" She asked.

The dog groaned and stayed in his position. Alexx raised an eyebrow and put the note in her pocket, before crouching down and clicking her fingers.

"Here Stanley" she called.

The dog got up and walked towards her, sitting between her bent knees and panting. She reached up and stroked behind his ears and she heard his tail start to wag against the leaf litter. She then stood up and looked around, she had no idea where she was and she reached into her other pocket and pulled out her phone, easily finding Will's number and dialling it.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(With Will)**

As soon as he heard the ringtone for Alexx, he pulled his phone out of his pants pocket and accepted the call, putting it on speaker.

"Alexx?" He asked.

There was some rustling on the other end and her breathing too.

 _ **"Will?"**  _She asked back.

Will breathed a sigh of relief, though he didn't know if she was injured or not, he was glad to know that she was alive.

"Where are you?" He questioned.

More rustling, he guessed she was looking around or something.

 _ **"I don't know, in a forest...somewhere"**  _she replied.

The man looked at the mechs who were around and Ironhide nodded at him and he nodded back.

"Don't worry, Ironhide's tracking your phone, don't hang up" he said.

There was silence and it wasn't long until Ironhide had her location.

"Okay Alexx, Ironhide has your location, we're coming to you. Are you hurt?" He asked.

He could hear her patting herself down, obviously she was soaking wet.

 _ **"No, but...oh my god!"**  _She cried.

Will, Optimus, Ironhide, Jazz, Ratchet, the other mechs, the femmes and the other humans all stopped dead at the sound of that cry and the five who cared about her most felt fear in their hearts/sparks.

"What is it?" Will asked.

There was sniffling and shuddering breaths.

 ** _"I-I'm c-covered in b-blood"_** she whispered.

Will nodded to Ironhide who transformed and Will got into his cab.

"I'm coming Alexx" he said.

He took the phone off of speaker and when he put it to his ear, he heard a dog barking.

"Alexx, what's that?" He questioned.

Another sniffle.

 _ **"Oh that's just Stanley, I don't know where he came from, but he's friendly enough"**  _Alexx said.

Will pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Just...don't move alright?" He asked.

He stayed on the line with Alexx until they reached her location and when they did, Will was straight out of Ironhide's cab and over to her with her in his arms in what felt like seconds. The dog was sat patiently next to her wagging his tail and panting as Will did this.

"What happened?" Will asked.

Alexx looked at him and shrugged, more tears springing to her eyes.

"I don't know. All I remember is coming out of the party store, taking a shortcut home and hearing a dog barking and whining. But it wasn't the kind of bark that the ASTS dogs would do, it was a scared bark. So I went to investigate and I can't remember anything after that" she explained.

Will nodded and looked down at the dog, crouching down and reaching out to him, seeing the blood on his paws and a little still on his head behind his ears. He looked up at Alexx who was looking down at him and the dog and then Will sighed.

"Come on" he said.

Alexx walked towards Ironhide and patted her thigh, Stanley came too and Ironhide's holoform held up his hands.

"Oh no,  _that_  is  _not_ getting in my cab" he said.

The Shifter femme glared at him.

"Well he's not riding in the back, in the rain. He's soaking wet as it is" she said.

Ironhide shook his head and Alexx growled, before walking away.

"Come on Stanley" she said.

The dog followed her and Will held up his hands, looking at Ironhide.

"You have  _leather_ seats, they can be dried off" he said.

The muscular man glared at him before rolling his eyes.

"Come on!" He called.

Alexx turned back and raised an eyebrow and Ironhide opened up his door, motioning for her to come with the dog. The Shifter femme smiled slightly and tapped her thigh, walking up to Ironhide and slipping into the passenger seat, tapping her lap. Stanley jumped up into her lap and then Ironhide cringed and closed his door. He then disappeared and Will got in behind the wheel, closing the door and heading back towards the base.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Back at base)**

As soon as they got back to base, Will had explained what Alexx had said and Ratchet had Alexx in for a check up and when he was satisfied that neither she or her canine friend had any injuries, he scanned the blood on her shirt and he was quite worried with what he found.

"And you're sure you can't remember what happened between you investigating the noises and you getting to the forest you were found in?" He asked.

Alexx nodded.

"It's like...its blank. Investigating the dog sounds is the last thing I remember...why?" She asked.

Ratchet shot her a worried glance and then cycled his intakes.

"This blood on your..." He began.

He looked up the term and then came back to her.

"The blood on your shirt...it's not yours" he said.

Alexx's eyes widened and she looked around, tears springing to her eyes again.

"Whose is it?" She asked.

Ratchet just gave her a concerned but sympathetic look.

"I apologise Alexx, but I am unsure as to who the donor is. I can say however, that from the amount of blood, whoever the donor was, they were bleeding quite profusely, probably from a major artery" he replied.

Alexx nodded and looked down to the floor, tears running down her face at the implications of what she'd done.

"I killed someone didn't I?" She asked.

Ratchet looked at her and gently lifted her head so he could look into her eyes.

"Now, I doubt that is the case Alexx" he said.

The femme looked into his optics and then sobbed loudly, causing him to bring her towards his chest plates.

"It will be alright Alexx" he said.

He kept saying this until she'd cried herself to sleep, then he'd placed her in the human cot and watched as the dog jumped onto the bed and curled up next to her. He cycled his intakes and walked out of the med bay, coming face to face with Ironhide, Jazz, Optimus and Will.

"Well?" Will asked.

Ratchet looked at the human male.

"She is traumatised. The blood on her shirt is most definitely not hers" he said.

Will raised an eyebrow.

"How do you know?" He asked.

Ratchet looked at him.

"Because the donor was male" he replied.

Will furrowed his brow and started biting his thumbnail.

"So she killed someone?" He questioned.

Ratchet went to say something but Optimus interjected.

"I highly doubt that Alexx has offlined someone, she is not like that" he said.

The medic nodded and shrugged.

"It is possible she was just helping someone who was losing a lot of blood fast and as a result got some on her clothing" he said.

Will looked at him.

" _Some_ that looks like a lot more than  _some_  to me!" He yelled.

Optimus attempted to calm the human down, but he just walked off, shaking his head. The large mech looked at Ratchet, who looked back.

"What are you thinking old friend?" He asked.

Ratchet looked down, before looking back at the large mech.

"Optimus, she has no memory of what happened to put the blood on her shirt. It is possible that she offlined someone, but I cannot be sure" he said.

The large mech nodded, this was a dilemma indeed.


	15. Chapter 15

**(A Few Months Later)**

A few months passed and finally Halloween arrived; the day was spent finding the right music for the party and decorating both the base and the house for that night. In the last few months, there had been a few isolated incidents of Alexx having blackouts and waking up in strange places with no memory of how she got there or what she'd done. Ratchet had also hacked the local Law Enforcement database and managed to find the name and residential address of the male who had spilled his blood over Alexx's shirt and with this information he decided to visit the specified residence. What he saw there shocked him to the core, in fact it positively horrified him. The named male was on the floor, flies and maggots all over his body, a gaping wound where his carotid artery and jugular vein were and the blood had pooled around him and soaked into the wooden floorboards. The stench was horrible and the medic had to fight not to purge his tanks, he scanned the body and the knife that was on the floor next to it and his worst fears were confirmed. Not only had the male been offline for at least three months, but the fingerprints and DNA on the knife were a close enough match to Alexx that she would immediately be the suspect.

With disappointment and sorrow in his optics, the mech had deactivated his holoform and transformed back into his alt form, begrudgingly informing Optimus of what he had found. The Prime hadn't been happy to say the least and Ratchet thought he had detected a hint of sorrow in the Autobot Leader's vocals, obviously he had known what the findings meant for their mate. While the medic had been on his way back to the base, he had gone over the DNA he had found on the knife, sure it had been close enough to Alexx's own DNA to be a match, but there had been certain undertones to it that could have possibly thrown off a human forensic pathologist. The mech had cycled his intakes and sped up so he could reach the base faster.

Once there, Optimus had called a meeting with Ironhide, Jazz and Ratchet himself to discuss the problem and there had been a massive debate both in Cybertronian and English as to whether they should allow Alexx to join the human soldiers at this Trick or Treat party.

_**~Flashback~** _

_**Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet stood in the med bay after Ratchet had returned. The Autobot Leader had a grave expression upon his faceplates as he turned towards Ironhide and Jazz. He cycled his intakes and rubbed his servo down his face, before taking a deep intake and releasing it slowly.** _

_**"What is it Optimus?" Ironhide asked.** _

_**The mech looked at him and shuttered his optics before opening them again.** _

_**"Ratchet has uncovered some disturbing news. With the aid of the human Law Enforcement database, he acquired both the designation and residential address of the human whose blood was on Alexx's clothing" he said.** _

_**Ironhide and Jazz looked at each other and then looked back at the Prime.** _

_**"So?" Jazz asked.** _

_**Ratchet piped up at this, his vocals just as grave as Optimus' were.** _

_**"I visited the residence and the throat of the male inside had been cut so severely it is likely that he bled out in mere seconds. With the state of decomposition the cadaver was in, I would have to place a guess that he has been offline for at least three months. What's more, is I found a DNA sample that was such a close match to Alexx's DNA that she would be the prime suspect for the intentional offlining of the male" he explained.** _

_**Both Ironhide's and Jazz's faceplates fell at hearing this and they looked at each other again before Jazz turned back to Ratchet and Optimus.** _

_**"But...she don't got no memory files of what happened. Ya can' just accuse her of doin' it" he said.** _

_**Optimus looked at his first lieutenant and cycled his intakes again.** _

_**"The evidence is there Jazz, if the human government were to find out about it, or the human law enforcement were able to make a match, even I could not stop the events that would surely follow" he said.** _

_**Ironhide looked up at the Autobot Leader.** _

_**"She's your mate Optimus...she's OUR mate! You cannot just assume that she is guilty of this heinous crime. As Jazz has just pointed out and as Alexx pointed out to Ratchet when he had questioned her, she has no memory files of what happened" he said.** _

_**Optimus nodded and cycled his intakes yet again.** _

_**"Indeed this does prove to be a problem. Unfortunately we are unsure as to whether she is telling us the truth or not" he stated.** _

_**Both Jazz and Ironhide growled and Ratchet spoke again.** _

_**"Then we ask her to take part in a polygraph. Sideswipe can conduct it as he will have no reason to alter the results" he suggested.** _

_**Optimus thought about this and nodded.** _

_**"Indeed. We shall conduct this polygraph after this Halloween event" he said.** _

_**~End Flashback~** _

All the mechs had been keeping a close optic on Alexx after this was decided and it was a few weeks after the first incident that another one happened. The Shifter femme had gone out for a walk and one of the soldiers had followed her at a safe distance, watching her every move. It hadn't been long until a horse had galloped out of the gloom of the trees with a large gash on its leg, followed by a whip wielding rider. The soldier watched as Alexx spoke with the man and then something strange happened, she seemed to grow...just slightly, a few inches maybe, her hair became more spiky and her body thinner and more toned. All this happened in the space of a few seconds and the soldier watched as the jockey's face turned from one of anger to one of fear and the horse whinnied in fear too.

The soldier was horrified to see how fast Alexx was and how fast she had grabbed the other male's head and snapped his neck. When she turned around, he saw that her jawline was different, it was like she was Alexx, but she wasn't Alexx at the same time. He'd slowly backed up and headed back to base, explaining to Will, Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet what he'd seen. This new information had concerned all five and the medic had immediately retreated to do some research, while Will had told Ironhide to take him back to that clinic they had been to before. Ironhide had eagerly done as asked, as he wanted to find out what was happening to his mate just as much as Will wished to know what was happening to his daughter.

After several hours, Will had emerged from the clinic with a book in his hand and scanning the book, Ironhide had learned the title.  _The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde_  by a dead human designated Robert Louis Stevenson. With that information, the mech googled the book and learned that Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde were practically the same as Alexx...well it was practically the same situation. He hadn't hesitated to inform the others of this new development and when they had returned to base, Will had explained what Thomas had said. Telling them that it was something that was completely abnormal for a Shifter, but may be the result of her mating with creatures that are not necessarily of human or Shifter descent.

Several other incidents had occurred in the weeks leading up to Halloween, but thankfully no-one had been offlined this time. They had been injured sure, but none were fatally wounded.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Present)**

Alexx was in the ladies toilets applying her make up for the party and the Trick or Treat thing, her ears had been burning the past few days and she'd noticed soldiers following her and the mechs watching her closely. She had a feeling it had something to do with the blackouts she'd been having and the absence of her memory after each one. She sighed and stopped applying the thick mascara, looking into the mirror she just stared at her reflection until the lights started flickering which made her look up at them for a brief second, but when she looked back at the mirror, she got a fright. There was a woman stood next to her, looking at her...the other woman looked just like her. Alexx looked to the side, but there was no-one there, so she looked back into the mirror and even there she saw nothing.

"Must be a figment of my imagination" she muttered.

She shook her head and continued to apply her make up, before smiling to herself and storing said make up under the sinks. With that done, she straightened out her dress and looked at herself in the mirror one last time, before walking out of the room. The mechs and humans saw her come out and instantly a man who was dressed like Gomez Addams came over to her, picking up her hand and kissing from the back of the appendage to the top of her shoulder.

"You look beautiful Cara Mia" he said.

Alexx glared at him and raised an eyebrow.

"I don't care who you're dressed up as, do that again and you'll be sorry" she said.

She pulled her arm out of his grasp and walked over to the drinks table, getting herself some of the punch and immediately downing what she had, before filling it up again.

"You should not drink like that, it's unhealthy" a voice said.

The Shifter femme turned around to see Ratchet's holoform stood there and she raised an eyebrow.

"And what, you've dressed up as Dr. Gregory House for Halloween?" She asked.

The mech just stared at her before he cycled his intakes.

"We are...worried about you Alexx" he said.

The femme looked down and then aighed, before putting the drink down and looking up at her mate.

"I don't know what's wrong with me Ratchet, I keep having blackouts and I end up in a field or something with no memory of how I got there or what I did before. It's scary" she stated.

Ratchet nodded and pulled her in for a hug.

"We know. I wish to ask you if you will take a polygraph" he said.

Alexx looked up at hearing this, her brow furrowing.

"A polygraph? You-you think I'm lying?" She asked.

The medic shook his head as the femme pulled out of his grasp.

"No! Primus no...but I found a disturbing scene near the forest you were found in the first time you had one of these...blackouts. Your DNA was on the knife that was used to sever a man's carotid artery and his jugular vein. We simply wish to do a polygraph so that we can give it to the authorities if need be" he explained.

Alexx growled loudly and the lights in the room started flickering, Ratchet looked around and then looked back to Alexx, who had her eyes shut and her head in her hands. The look of pain that crossed her features was enough to have him concerned.

"Alexx, are you alright?" He asked.

The femme didn't answer, instead she just fell to her knees and started screaming. The music stopped, people stopped dancing and talking and joking around and looked over to her, some of them pointing and muttering in awe.

"Wow Alexx..some performance" one man said.

Ratchet scanned his mate and then hurriedly picked her up.

"It is not a performance" he said.

He practically ran to the med bay, his alt form following along with Will, Optimus, Jazz and Ironhide. Once in there, Ratchet placed Alexx on a human sized medical berth and started scanning her head. The lights flickered again and then they stopped, at the same time as Alexx stopped screaming. All eyes/optics were on her and the myriad of gasps that went around as soon as Alexx's hands came away from her face was...like a chorus of ghosts.

"Alexx?" Will ventured.

The female looked towards him, her cat-like green eyes just staring at him.

"Alexx isn't here right now, but if you'd like to leave a message, I suggest you write it down" she said.

She then stood up and the mechs and human saw first hand what the soldier had described a few weeks ago. This most certainly wasn't Alexx...but it also was Alexx. Will thought back to the story of Jekyll and Hyde and backed up, knowing this femme would hurt him if given half the chance. The femme looked over at him and laughed.

"Oh don't worry soldier boy... _mommy_ would kill me if I hurt you. Metaphorically speaking of course. If she killed me, she'd have to kill herself too" she said.

She looked around and then stretched, her joints popping as she did.

"So...a party huh? Well I'm the life and soul of any party" she stated.

She went to walk out of the door but Ratchet sent a code to lock it. The femme turned around and looked at him.

"Well that wasn't nice" she said.

She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him as he looked down at her.

"Who are you?" He asked.

The femme shook her head.

"No, no, no. The  _correct_  question is...who...are  _you_?" She asked back.

Ratchet looked at Optimus, who looked at Ratchet and then knelt down to be eye level with the femme.

"Where is Alexx?" He questioned.

The femme smiled and tapped her head.

"Sleeping...in here" she replied.

Will stepped forward.

"Alexx is a Shifter...I've heard her talking to Thomas about someone named... _Thera_  is that you?" He asked.

Thera laughed and looked right at him.

"Well who's the brainy little soldier boy huh? Well done" she answered.

The mechs looked at her and then at Will, before looking back at her again.

"You are the one who offlined that male in the woods, and the male in the residence near to the forest William and Ironhide found Alexx in?" Optimus asked.

Thera grinned and Optimus took that as an affirmative. Thera laughed at his face.

"Oh come now handsome...I'm a  _cat_ and a wild one at that...I was  _born_ to kill" she said.

The mech shook his head.

"No...killing is a choice. You either choose to kill or you choose not to. You chose wrong" he stated.

Thera cackled.

"What're you gonna do, kill me? Kill little Alexx?" She asked.

Optimus stood up and thought. She was right, if he even attempted to harm her, her would undoubtedly harm Alexx too, as it was her body Thera was in. But he did not like this femme, not one bit.

"Release Alexx this instant" he demanded.

Thera pretended to think about it.

"Hmmm...nope, I don't think I will" she said.

She then turned and pulled at the human door, breaking the lock and looking back to the mechs and human.

"See ya" she said.

Sure the mechs were her mates, but why stay and chat with them when there was a party to be had?

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Med Bay)**

Optimus looked at Ratchet, who looked at Will, who was staring at the door in shock.

"I have a killer daughter, who just so happens to be a sweet little Shifter angel too" he muttered.

He'd read the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde book, Jekyll had died in his forties and as a virgin too, but Thomas had said that Alexx wouldn't die...but if not kept in check...Thera would take over wholly and completely.


	16. Chapter 16

**(A Few Weeks Later)**

A few weeks had passed and most of the soldiers had noticed that Alexx wasn't her usual bubbly self. Of course, they hadn't known of the events that happened on Halloween, so they were stumped as to why the feline Shifter was more reserved and broody. Jazz and several of the mechs and femmes had also noticed this, only they were sure that they knew why, ever since the incident on Halloween, Optimus and Ratchet hadn't been able to look at her and Ironhide wasn't talking to her. It was almost as if they were blaming her for Thera's appearance and therefore for all the actions Thera had performed, being the observant mech he was, Jazz could easily discern the subtle differences between Alexx and Thera and could see how upset Alexx was each time she had an episode.

Currently, the Shifter femme was in the shower after waking up from another episode covered in mud. Thankfully Ironhide and Optimus along with the Arcee triplets, Mudflap, Skids and Sideswipe were in Shanghai on a mission to find and destroy the remaining Decepticons. Jazz cycled his intakes and shook his helm, he activated his holoform and walked into the bathroom just as Alexx came out of the shower. She looked at him and then walked up to the sinks and looked into the mirror.

"What do you want, aren't you supposed to be ignoring me like the others?" She asked.

The silver mech shook his helm and leaned against one of the stalls with his arms crossed over his chest. His blue eyes rested on the practically naked femme in front of him.

"I ain't blind Alexx, I know which is Thera an' which is you" he replied.

Alexx's hands dropped onto the sink and she bowed her head, tears forming in her eyes and her nose beginning to run, causing her to sniffle.

"Then why can't the others see it, why do they have to judge  _me_ on what  _she_ does? It's not like I can control her" she said.

Her voice was thick and wavered as she spoke and Jazz moved away from the stall and pulled her into a hug, cycling his intakes as he did.

"I ain't sure Alexx, Optimus' a funny mech, anythin' that threatens the humans, he holds a grudge against 'em or it" he stated.

Alexx cuddled into him, he obviously didn't care that she was still wet so she didn't either. She grabbed onto his shirt and buried her head under his, still sniffling as the tears rolled down her face.

"But other humans threaten other humans and Optimus doesn't hold a grudge against them. So why is he holding a grudge against me, is it because I'm not human?" She asked.

Jazz pulled away and looked into her beautiful, tear filled hazel eyes and shook his head. He brought a hand up to wipe away her tears and smiled slightly.

"Don' ever say that a'right, yer human. If ya weren't human ya wouldn't be upset every time Thera takes over, ya wouldn't care" he answered.

Alexx smiled up at him and brought her hand up to wipe at her nose, she sniffled again and then she looked down.

"I think it'd be best if I just leave for a while. Maybe I can find some answers" she said.

Jazz smirked a little and lifted her chin with his forefinger and thumb.

"Ya ain't goin' nowhere without me femme" he said.

Alexx gave him a bit of a smile and then slowly she reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck, before she leaned up on her tippy toes and pressed a kiss to his lips. The mech wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her back, before he lifted her up onto the counter top and continued to kiss her. However, he pulled away once he felt that things were going a little too far for right now.

"Alexx, I think dat's betta suited ta when ya ain't upset. Don' get me wrong, I'd love ta make love to ya right here an' right now, but yer upset an' I don' wanna take advantage of ya" he stated.

The Shifter femme smiled and nodded, before giving him one last kiss and jumping down from the counter. At least she still had one of her mates who didn't hold a grudge against her for what Thera did. As Jazz walked out of the bathroom, she got herself dried and dressed and then she decided where she needed to go.

"Jazz...we need to visit some people who can help me...I hope" she said.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(An hour later)**

Alexx and Jazz arrived at the settlement where the tribe was and Alexx exited Jazz's alt mode, walking up to one of the tribesmen and bowing respectfully. Of course, the tribe remembered her from when she had taken ill and stayed with them, so the man on guard called to another man, who came and escorted Alexx and Jazz to the Chief's tent. Once they were there, the man bowed his head respectfully and Alexx bowed her head back, before walking into the tent and kneeling down. Jazz followed suit.

"Alexx, what a pleasant surprise" the Chief said.

The Shifter femme looked up at him and gave a wry smile.

"I wish it were under different circumstances. I have questions and I hope that you can answer them for me" she stated.

The Chief looked at her and a smile appeared on his face before he came and knelt down in front of her. He closed his eyes and passed his hand over her face and head, before he nodded.

"Indeed you are troubled child, you are in a state of denial and self doubt" he said.

Alexx sighed and looked at him, before folding her hands in her lap and looking down at them.

"I've been having blackouts, it started after two of my mates accepted me. The first time, I woke up covered in blood, the second time I was told that I broke a man's neck, the third time I just woke up in a field and this last time, I woke up covered in mud. I remember everything up until I have the blackout, then I remember nothing of what happens during the blackout" she explained.

The Chief nodded and closed his eyes, before looking up at her.

"I see...your Shifter is restless, awakened by your taking of mates. This is not unusual for Shifters, however the last time this happened was one hundred years ago" he said.

Alexx looked up and furrowed her brow. The Chief gave a knowing smile and stood up.

"Come" he said.

The Shifter femme stood and followed him to the mountain, Jazz followed too. The Chief took them both into a cave that had been eroded into the side of the mountain and in there lay a sarcophagus, with ancient scripture on the wall above it.

"This is your great, great grandfather. He came to us one hundred years ago, when my great, great grandfather was Chief. He had the same problem as you have. His Shifter was restless, being an Alpha he had taken three mates when the changes started. He was most upset that he had been harming people, giving the Anti Shifter Terrorist Squad something to hate Shifters for" he said.

Alexx listened, as did Jazz. So it wasn't just her who had this problem, it had happened before. The Shifter looked at the Chief and then looked back at the sarcophagus and the scripture.

"What happened to him?" She asked.

The Chief smiled.

"He contacted his Shifter and after speaking with him, his Shifter calmed down and no longer harmed anyone...at least not to the point of killing them" he answered.

Alexx nodded and then turned towards Jazz, before looking at the Chief again.

"Did your grandfather help him to contact his Shifter?" She questioned.

Again the Chief nodded and his smile got wider.

"The ritual for this has been passed down through the generations, as has the story of your great, great grandfather. If contacting your Shifter is what you wish to do, then I can help. But it is dangerous" he replied.

The Shifter femme shook her head and then steeled herself.

"Dangerous or not, this has to stop" she stated.

The Chief nodded and walked out of the cave, taking her and Jazz over to the medical tent and sending someone for the tribe Shaman. As soon as the Shaman arrived, the Chief told Alexx to lay on the bed which she did and then the Shaman began to chant. In the middle of the ritual, Alexx began to convulse and Jazz went to help her, but the Chief stopped him.

"This is necessary" he said.

Jazz wasn't happy, but he stayed put anyway. It wasn't long until Alexx stopped convulsing and the Shaman stopped chanting. She looked at the Chief and then nodded.

"She is contacting her Shifter" she said.

The Chief nodded and then looked at Jazz.

"Now we wait" he said.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx)**

She woke to brightness invading her eyes and when she opened them, she was in the same field she had been when she'd lost her virginity. She stood up and looked around, finding the grass to be moving with no noise. Steeling herself, she narrowed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Thera!" She yelled.

All was silent, the grass still moved without any noise, birds flew over the clearing, silently and she looked down, seeing a cricket hopping across the flattened grass, with no noise.

"Thera, I know you're here, come out!" She yelled.

She turned around, looking for any sign of the other femme, but saw nothing. Though when she turned back the way she had been facing before and saw the other femme.

 _"You yelled?"_ She asked.

Alexx stood there silently, glaring at the other femme with her fists clenched at her side. Thera stood there waiting for Alexx to speak, sighing as she did.

 _"Well?"_ She urged.

The other femme took a deep breath.

"You gotta stop killing people. You're making me look bad" she said.

Thera raised an eyebrow and then crossed her arms over her chest, looking at one hand and inspecting her nails.

 _"The two worms I killed, deserved what they got"_ she stated.

This time it was Alexx's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"How'd you figure that one out?" She asked.

Thera smiled at the other female and leaned forward.

 _"I'm your Shifter, we're Alphas, we have a unique bond with all animals. When I heard that dog barking in fear and saw what that **worm** was going to do, I had to stop it. When I saw that wound on that horse, I  **had** to punish the rider"_ she replied.

Alexx took a breath to say something, but she faltered and released the breath, before thumping down on the floor and crossing her legs. She put her hands to her forehead and then sighed, before looking up at the taller femme.

"Right, I understand why you felt you  _needed_ to do that, but  _please_  stop killing people. Optimus, Ironhide and Ratchet aren't going to be my mates much longer if you keep this up" she said.

Thera knelt down and looked at her counterpart.

 _"Those mechs are as much **my** mates as they are yours. You think you would even  **have** them as mates if it weren't for me? Because you wouldn't...its because of  **me** that you have four alien robots doting on you. But...I understand that killing people is going to get us in trouble. So I promise I won't  **kill** anyone"_ she said.

Alexx gave her a nod and then went to stand up, before Thera put her hand on her arm.

 _"I'm a wild animal Alexx, I was **born** to hunt. If I'm not going to be able to exhibit my natural behaviours, people are going to get hurt. Optimus doesn't seem to understand this" _she said.

The shorter femme gave Thera a tear filled look, before she looked away.

"But it's because of  _you_ that Optimus and Ratchet can't stand to look at me anymore, it's because of  _you_ that Ironhide isn't speaking to me anymore. I feel like they hate me because of  _you_ " she said.

Thera could feel how much the mechs brush offs hurt Alexx and a softer side came out, she shimmied up to the shorter femme and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

 _"I'll sort it out. I promise I won't kill anyone and I'm sure Jazz won't let me. But I'm going to have a word with those mechs. Do what you won't, tell them the truth about how they're acting"_ she said.

Being so upset with how her mechs were treating her, Alexx simply nodded and Thera nodded too and then soothed the other femme.

 _"You go to sleep, let me take over"_ she said.

Alexx nodded and curled up, letting sleep take her. Thera nodded and grinned maliciously, before disappearing.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Normal)**

When Alexx woke up, the first thing Jazz noticed...was that it wasn't Alexx. The smile on his face fell and a frown appeared in its place. He looked to the Chief, who seemed to be smiling and calm and when he looked to the Shaman, he saw that she too was calm. Thera sat up on the bed and looked around, spotting Jazz's holoform and pointing to him.

"You! We need to go back to the base, right now" she said.

She stood up, albeit on wobbly legs, but once she'd recovered she strode from the tent and right over to the sleek Pontiac that was parked nearby. When Jazz came out, she got into the car and Jazz followed suit, looking at the femme strangely. She then looked at him.

"What?" She asked.

Jazz shook his head and cycled his intakes. Thera growled and rolled her eyes.

"I'm not gonna kill anyone alright, I promised Alexx that I wouldn't. I do however have some choice words to say to the other three fucktards who seem to think that brushing off Alexx is acceptable" she ranted.

The saboteur nodded and started the engine, reversing before turning around and peeling away from the settlement, slowing down once he reached the city.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(The Base)**

Optimus, Will, Ironhide and the other mechs and femmes had since arrived back at the base and Optimus was shocked to find that he felt relieved that Alexx wasn't there. It had been so hard for him since Halloween, every time he looked at her, he didn't see  _her_ he saw Thera. The thought of even  _thinking_ about disliking Alexx had his spark breaking just a little more. He knew that Ratchet and Ironhide felt the same, but what could he do, he couldn't just ignore the fact that Thera had killed two people and she seemed to be proud of that fact.

The large mech cycled his intakes and drove over to the large catwalk that had been built and he transformed, ready to speak with General Morshower. If it wasn't for a pesky little human by the name of Theodore Galloway, everything would've been fine. Still, he spoke with the General and then he heard the sound of Jazz's engine and he turned to see the mech coming into the base with Alexx...no... _Thera_ inside of him. As soon as the femme exited his first lieutenant, said mech transformed and Thera came up to him.

"You! You lanky piece of scrap metal. How  _dare_  you" she said.

Optimus was taken aback by the name calling and by the ferocity of which Thera had spoken. He looked down at the femme and though his expression remained passive, inside he was beginning to feel confusion mixed with a little guilt. To dislike Thera meant to dislike Alexx and that was something he couldn't do.

"What is it I have done?" He asked.

Thera growled and raised an eyebrow.

"Don't play coy with me you overgrown toaster! You and your medic and your weapons specialist know  _exactly_ what you've done. Did you think that by ignoring Alexx you could ignore the fact that I was present in her mind, did you? Well I guess you thought wrong huh? All you and the other two fucktards have done, is made her think that you  _ **hate her**!" _ She yelled.

Optimus near enough took a step back at that. Hate her? How could she think that he, Ratchet and Ironhide hated...oh no.

"I did not mean for that to happen" he said.

Thera nodded and laughed sarcastically.

"No? Well guess what, it did. Now it isn't only  _her_ who feels the pain of your blatant disapproval of me,but I feel it too. You have  _no_ right to accuse me of anything. Humans kill other humans all the time, I don't see you  _hating_ them do I? No! Do you know why? It's because they're  _human_. Do you think that just because Alexx and I are part feline, that we're exempt from the human condition?" She asked.

Ratchet then transformed and so did Ironhide and Thera looked over at them.

"Do you?" She asked.

The two mechs looked at each other and then looked at Optimus and so did Thera.

"You saying that I  _chose_ to kill, is like saying a large cat, like a Tiger can  _choose_ to be a vegetarian. It...will...never...happen. As a Shifter, both Alexx and I were  _born_ to hunt. She's been raised among humans, so she thinks that killing isn't right for her. If you want us to stop hunting, then you might as well teach a wild tiger to stop hunting" she said.

All three mechs looked down at her and Ratchet opened his mouth to speak.

"You are a danger to the humans on this base, surely you understand that? Because of this, we feel that we are unable to trust Alexx, the slightest bit of stress and you appear. The soldiers are worried for their lives, especially the young male who witnessed you kill a man" he said.

Thera looked to him and raised an eyebrow.

"So what? You wanna lock me up, is that it? Well let me tell you, if you lock Alexx up for something that she cannot control, then you...all of you, are no better that the fucking Decepticons. In fact, I think I might just go to the Decepticons, at least then I'd have a reason for being locked up. Heck, they might even treat us better" she said.

During this little rant, Thera had slowly given control back to Alexx, so now she was the one to hear what was being said. Ironhide growled and his cannons rolled to life on his arms.

"A Decepticon is no mate of mine! You go to them, ya might as well never come back" he said.

Alexx looked at him.

"Do you deny it then Ironhide? Do you deny that you blame me for the actions that Thera performed and that because of that you and Optimus and Ratchet can't even stand to  _ **look at me**_ _!?_ " She asked.

Ironhide looked at her and he noticed that it was now Alexx who was stood there and he instantly felt guilty for what he'd said, but he still kept his stance.

"Alexx I..." He began.

Alexx held up a hand and then looked down to the ground and when she looked up again, tears were rolling down her face.

"No...you're right. I don't belong here anyway, I never belonged here. It's fine, I understand, which is just as well..." She said.

She then looked up at all the mechs.

"...because you were never my mates anyway. I was just using you to get laid" she lied.

She then turned and looked at Jazz.

"Sorry Jazzman...the majority ruined it for the minority" she stated.

She then looked back at Optimus, Ironhide and Ratchet, who all had shocked looks on their faces. She gave a bit of a smirk.

"I'm going home" she said.

She then walked out of the base. Will looked at Ironhide, Optimus and Ratchet and shook his head, before running out to catch up with Alexx.

"Alexx wait!" He called.

The Shifter femme stopped and turned back towards the man, looking at him with tears still in her eyes and tear tracks down her cheeks.

"What?" She asked.

The man stopped in front of her and sighed.

"I'm sorry...I shouldn't have brought you here in the first place. Uh...have a safe trip, get Sarah to ring me when you get there" he said.

Just as he started to walk away, Alexx chuckled.

"I'm not going back to the house" she said.

Will stopped and turned to look at her, his eyes wide.

"What?" He asked.

Alexx shrugged.

"I'm going  _home_ , where I actually belong" she said.

Then right in front of his eyes, she Shifted into her panther form and ran off into the trees, leaving him stood there, looking like he'd just had his heart ripped out of his chest. Behind him, Jazz was stood the same way, before he slowly turned towards Optimus, Ironhide and Ratchet.

"I 'ope y'all happy, Prime, Hatchet, 'Hide... Now she's gone, and there ain't any indication that she's gonna come back" he said.

His optics had become darker with his anger and Ratchet stepped forward.

"She will come back Jazz" he said.

Jazz growled and his optics turned a light scarlet.

"We're her  _mates_ , an' all ya got for her is distrust, hatred and...and...and, well...it don't matter now does it? She gone and she'd be betta off too. No stupid and blind mechs to point the servo extension if somethin' goes wrong" he said.

He then transformed and drove off outside. Stopping as far away from the base as he could. Inside, Optimus was beginning to regret everything, he knew she'd lied when she said that they weren't her mates, but that didn't make the sting any better. Realisation struck that Thera was right and so was Jazz. He was so busy with thinking that his mate was a killer, he didn't stop to think  _why_ those men had been killed. It wasn't until the soldiers words rang in his processor that he realised his biggest mistake.

_**~Flashback~** _

_**The soldier who had followed Alexx came running into the base, right up to Will.** _

_**"Sir...sir! Thera, she's made an appearance sir" he said.** _

_**Optimus had turned from what he had been doing and stepped over to the man.** _

_**"What happened?" He asked.** _

_**The soldier looked up at him.** _

_**"She killed again sir...broke a mans neck as if it were a twig sir" he replied.** _

_**Optimus stopped and felt his spark sink, now someone had witnessed her killing. He cycled his intakes and pinched the bridge of his nasal ridge. Listening to what Will and the soldier were saying.** _

_**"What caused Thera's appearance?" Will asked.** _

_**The soldier took a moment to remember.** _

_**"A horse came running into the trees, it had a pretty nasty gash from a whip on it's hide. The rider came into the trees after it and Thera just...appeared" he explained.** _

_**Will's eyes lit up with realisation.** _

_**"When Ironhide and I found her in the woods, she had a dog with her. The dog looked pretty beaten up and thin" he said.** _

_**The soldier wondered what Will was on about before he put two and two together.** _

_**"She only kills those who've harmed animals" he said.** _

_**Will nodded.** _

_**"She's giving the animals justice where there would usually be none" he said.** _

_**~End Flashback~** _

The fact that Alexx or rather Thera wasn't just killing innocent people had stunned him. Now he found himself wishing that he had asked for her side of the story on Halloween instead of just assuming that she had killed for the fun of it.

"What have we done?" He asked.

Ratchet and Ironhide looked at him funny and he shared the memory file with them, replaying the last few things the soldier and William had said. This caused the other two mechs to slump and he could feel their guilt too.

"She's not a mindless murderer" Ratchet stated.

He looked down to the dog that was curled up on a blanket in one of the corners. Thera had saved this dog from what he presumed was an untimely offlining and the horse, she had given the horse justice for being hurt by his rider. She was doing what she believed to be right.


	17. Chapter 17

**(Somewhere in the desert)**

Three men stood before a desk, each of the men had their heads bowed and their hands interlocked infront of them. The man behind the desk looked up at them and then clasped his hands atop the desk and glared at them.

"Well?" He asked.

One of the men looked up and then swallowed before stepping forward. He cleared his throat and pulled his collar away from his neck.

"She appears to have left the base sir, she no longer has her soldier adoptive father and the other soldiers to protect her" he said.

The man behind the desk smiled and leaned back, his hands now folded over his portly stomach.

"Excellent. Soon I will have back that which was stolen from me. I will breed a new form of soldier" he stated.

He stood up from behind the desk and walked around to them, before plucking his jacket off of the hat stand and slipping it on.

"As I am sure you two are aware, three years ago I found the perfect couple..." He began.

As he spoke, he walked out of his office and headed down the halls, hearing the creies of babies, the yelling of children being trained and the screaming of women giving birth.

"...This couple produced Alexx, who is, as I have learned, an Alpha Shifter with a multiple personality. Which is excellent" he said.

One of the men put his finger to his lips and then held it out.

"Uh wh-why is that excellent sir?" He questioned.

The portly man stopped at a door and turned around to face the man who had spoken.

"My great, great, great, great grandfather started this organisation over five hundred years ago, in order to attempt to get the humans of this Earth to stop caring about the  _abominations_ that are Shifters, but it didn't work and unfortunately one of these freaks managed to win the heart of the king. So a law was passed to protect them. But once every hundred years, an Alpha Shifter would be born who had a different personality within them, this other personality could also transfigure the body to look different, it was only when people started paying close attention...people like a certain Author by the name of Robert Louis Stevenson, that they decided that these beings were two completely different people" he replied.

The other man raised an eyebrow and then nodded. The stout man smiled and swiped a card through the door and it opened to reveal many prison cells, each with either a woman, a man and a woman or a woman and child in. The man walked into the room, followed by the other three men.

"What these people also found, was that one other Alpha Shifter would be born with the same...uh...genetic defect I believe they called it, and if those two were to find one another and mate, they would probably produce a child who was exactly like them. Upon hearing of this, my ancestor dedicated much of his time to studying these creatures, so that one day, an army would be made who could wipe out the entire population of Shifters. I already have one of these genetic anomalies, I just need the other one" he said.

The other men looked at each other and then smiled, before the pot bellied man turned to face them again.

"That is...if another incident like what happened three years ago doesn't happen" he said.

The middle of the three men swallowed.

"They escaped, it wasn't my fault!" He exclaimed.

The boss held up his hand and silenced the flailing man.

 _"You_  were on guard that night,  _you_ were supposed to make sure that all the freaks were in their cages. Therefore the incident  _was_ your fault as because of this, I held and stop do hold you personally accountable" he stated.

The middle man swallowed again and nodded meekly and the boss nodded again, turning towards the cell with the genetic abomination in.

"I'm sorry sir, it won't happen again, I swear" the taller man said.

The boss nodded and turned to him, smiling.

"You had better hope it doesn't Jenkins, because if it does, you'll find yourself facing one of my Freak gladiators. In a match you will not return from. Am I clear?" He questioned.

The lackey nodded and swallowed so hard it was audible.

"Crystal sir" he replied.

The boss nodded and smirked.

"Good, now go and get me that abomination" he said.

All three men nodded and left the room while the portly man sighed and leaned against the cell, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a tub of pills, popping the lid off he tapped a couple out and swallowed them dry, before reapplying the lid and putting the tub back in his pocket.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Elsewhere)**

Alexx hadn't strayed far from the base, it had only been her intention to leave the mechs for a few days to let tthem think about what they'd done and how they'd hurt her. She knew that rejecting Jazz and Ironhide would cause them great pain and as much as she knew it wasn't fair to Jazz, it was just unfortunate that he'd had to share the same fate. Currently she was walking alongside a river in her panther form, when she saw a man dump a black bag into the water. Curiosity got the better of her and when the man had left, she shifted to her human form and got into the river, plucking the bag from beneath the surface.

As soon as she picked it up, it moved and a quiet mewing sound was heard from it, her heart stopped and she got out of the water quickly, ripping open the bag and peering in to see...Seven newborn kittens huddled up in the bottom. Her anger quickly rose, but she quelled it, instead looking at the retreating back of the man. She weighed up her options and pulled out a small recording device and pressed record.

"The man you have in your arms, just tried to drown seven newborn kittens. Do Not kill him, you may rough him up a little, but do not kill him" she said.

Then she stood up and hurried after the man.

"Excuse me sir!" She called.

The man just kept on walking and she growled and grabbed his arm.

"Apologies sir, but I think you left something over by the lake" she said.

The man glared at her.

"Nah love, it was just junk" he stated.

He tried to walk off, but Thera took over and growled, pulling him back.

"Junk, I hardly think seven newborn felines are junk. Come with me" she said.

She grabbed him by the scruff and dragged him over to the river, before making him kneel.

"Now then..." She said.

She saw the voice recorder and picked it up, examining it before pressing a button and hearing Alexx's voice telling her what he tried to do. She rolled her eyes.

"I'm not stupid, I saw it too you know. Anyway...I've been given permission. So what should your punishment be hmm?" She asked.

She looked around and then an idea came to her as she looked at the river.

"I have the perfect idea. Your head shall be dunked in this ice cold water, for five seconds for each kitten. That's thirty five seconds. I wonder if you can hold your breath that long" she said.

The man went to say something but she dunked his head under the water.

"1, 2, 3, 4, 5" she counted.

She then pulled his head up and he gasped for air, she put her mouth next to his ear.

"That's one kitten" she hissed.

She did this six more times and when he was unconscious, she threw him on the bank and raided his pockets, pulling out his wallet with his address. She smiled and took his house keys and picked up the bag, walking away from the unconscious man and heading towards a wicker basket store. Thankfully the store was closed, but she still managed to sneak in and steal a wicker basket, which she put the kittens in and covered them up with a blanket she found.

Once she arrived at the man's home, she unlocked the door but as she was about to step in, an elderly woman came out of her door.

"Who're you?" She asked.

Thinking fast, Thera put on a foreign accent and gave a small smile.

"I am Mr. Kettle cleaner, I clean" she said.

The elderly woman looked at her and then looked her over before smiling.

"Okay dearie. It's nice that he has a woman, he's such a loner" she said.

Thera nodded and then walked in, finding a female cat who was looking for her kittens. Slowly she entered the lounge and put the basket down, calling out to the cat. She picked it up and put the queen into her cat bed, before placing the kittens at her stomach and watched as they eagerly began to feed. She then went to the kitchen and prepared a hearty meal of cat food for the queen and put it beside the bed, along with a bowl of water. She then walked out and knocked on the old lady's door.

The old lady answered and Thera gave her best smile.

"Mr. Kettle has cat yes?" She asked.

The old lady nodded and Thera grinned.

"Cat has babies. Cat must be fed three times per day, house is clean. I am going back to home country, so cannot look after cat and kittens, Mr. Kettle is on business trip, not sure when be back" she said.

The old lady nodded and Thera left the keys with her, before walking off. A huge smile upon her face.


	18. Chapter 18

**(A Few Days Later)**

A few days had passed and while the mood at the base was a sombre one, the mechs the femmes and the humans knew that they had work to do. However, there were three mechs who the humans stayed away from. Jazz had been sitting outside of the base since Alexx had gone and because of the aura surrounding the saboteur, the humans had been staying away from him the way he was acting was very unlike him, usually he was a bubbly mech but ever since Alexx had gone, he'd had a dangerous aura about him. Ironhide was his usual gruff self, but there were also some undertones of the same dangerous aura that Jazz had. Since the argument him, Ratchet, Optimus and Jazz had engaged in with Alexx a few days ago and with her rejection of them, he found his chest hurting more and more. He'd always been good with pain, but this pain was beginning to become unbearable, but he didn't want to go to Ratchet about it, because the medimech was much grumpier than usual so much so in fact that the other mechs and femmes tried their hardest not to hurt themselves too much or strain their muscle cords and the humans opted to see their General Practitioners instead of seeing Ratchet.

In fact, the only mech who  _wasn't_  grumpy was Optimus. Yes the large mech was upset about losing Alexx and yes he was angered by the lie she told them before she left, but he still loved her. And yes, the more he thought about it, the more everything that happened prior to them becoming mates made sense. He loved Alexx, he was  _in_ love with her, that was one of the reasons that during the last few days, he'd found it within himself to forgive her. He knew that she was only lying to hurt them, because whether they liked it or not, they had hurt her in ways even they couldn't imagine. However, as much as he wanted to go out there and search for the human femme himself, he knew he had work to do, Alexx would come back to them when she was ready and from the looks of it, that wasn't quite yet. As of the last few days, Optimus had been in a rather contemplative mood, the words that Demolisher had spoken before he had offlined him bothered him greatly.  _"The Fallen Shall Rise Again"_ those words were ominous and made no sense even to him, day and night he searched his processor for anything that could even  _hope_ to signify what the statement meant, but so far he'd found nothing.

It didn't help when he had Director Galloway hovering around the base like a bluebottle fly around a fresh pile of manure and recently the large mech found himself losing patience with the scrawny little man, something he wasn't accustomed to doing. He blamed it on the recent anger and grief that he'd experienced. In an attempt to piece together this, what was turning out to be, elaborate puzzle he'd even asked Sam for help, but the boy had expressed a strong desire to have a normal life. This had of course somewhat frustrated the big mech, but he wouldn't press the matter. Presently, he was parked outside the base, near to where Jazz was and he had his holoform active, sitting upon his own hood, he leaned back and looked up at the stars thinking about the events of the past few days.

When he thought about it, Jazz was indeed right Alexx  _was_ their mates and they  _were_ blaming her for the things that Thera had done. There had been some evidence though that Thera had changed, or at least Alexx had found a way of keeping her under control. A couple of the soldiers had stumbled upon an unconscious and partially drowned but alive man by a river and because it was so near the base, the CCTV had caught everything that had happened. It seemed that Alexx had said something into a voice recorder and Thera had only attempted to drown the man leaving him only unconscious instead of dead. It was an improvement that had made him smile. He was broken out of his reverie when he received a transmission from Bumblebee.

_**:Bumblebee to Prime:** _

_**:Prime, what is it Bumblebee?:** _

_**:It is Sam sir, he has been captured:** _

Optimus' holoform shot up on his hood at hearing this, his eyes wide and worried.

_**:Where?:** _

_**:Outside of the Educational Institute sir. They escaped in a normal vehicle but Grindor captured them, I am going to follow them:** _

_**:Negative Bumblebee, I shall gather reinforcements and we shall retrieve them together:** _

_**:But sir...:** _

_**:That is an order Bumblebee!:** _

_**:...Yes sir:** _

_**:Prime out:** _

He deactivated his holoform and transformed, walking inside to share the news with the others. A team of Sideswipe, Ironhide, Jolt and the Arcee triplets went with him to get Sam. Bumblebee had said ssomething about a Decepticon pretender being in the area, but being that it was only one Decepticon and a small one at that, Optimus thought his scout could handle it. It seemed that things were a lot worse than he feared.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx)**

Having been away from the base for a few days, Alexx had time to think on the events that lead to her leaving. She came to the conclusion that perhaps she and Thera were too hard on the mechs. After all, they were fighting a battle with a hoard of Decepticons who killed for the fun of killing and where she had expected them to know that her being half animal, half  _hunter_  that she would feel the urge to hunt, she decided that she could forgive them for being ignorant of this fact. During her time away, she was surprised that she hadn't felt any pain rejecting Ironhide and Jazz as she had, but she 'd remembered that the only reason she had felt pain before, was because  _they_ had rejected  _her_. So now she was on her way back to the base, to talk some things over with the mechs and so that she could apologise for lying to them about not being her mates.

When she got there however, she was surprised to see that Jazz was out the front of the base. If her memory served her well, that was the very same place he had been when she had left. Walking up to him, she placed her hand on his hood and felt the warm metal beneath her hand, obviously it was from the sun, because she was sure that he hadn't moved since she had left. As soon as she got to the door, the mech's holoform was active and had her wrapped in a tight embrace.

"Ah thought ya'd neva come back" he said.

A sad smile found its way onto her face and she hugged him back, before pulling away and looking into his blue eyes. She brought her hand up to his face and stroked his cheek lightly with her thumb before leaning forward and softly placing her lips upon his.

"Well, you guys were really digging into me. It hurt to think that you guys thought so little of me that you would think that I was responsible for what Thera was doing and the fact that you could think that Thera was killing for the fun of doing so" she said.

Jazz looked down at her and cycled his intakes, before kneeling down and holding his servo on the floor. Alexx sighed and walked over to him and stepped onto his hand.

"It wasn't until Optimus revealed to us a conversation he had with one of the human soldiers that we realised that Thera wasn't killing people for the sake of killing. I understand that as a Shifter you have connections with all animals, so because of this Thera believes that it is her priority to serve justice for the animals that are harmed" he said.

Alexx nodded and then furrowed her brow.

"Speaking of Optimus, where is he?" She asked.

The Saboteur looked down at her and his lip plates set into a grim line.

"Optimus received a transmission from Bumblebee sayin' Sam 'ad been captured by de Decepticons" he answered.

The Shifter femme nodded and then crossed her arms over her chest.

"And being the gallant mech that Optimus is, I expect he took a small platoon with him to retrieve the boy?" She questioned.

Jazz looked at her and gave a bit of a snort.

"If by small platoon ya mean Ironhide, Ratchet, Mudflap, Skids an' Sideswipe going with him den yeah" he replied.

Alexx sighed and shook her head and the raised an optic ridge at her head shaking.

"Ya dun like it?" He asked.

The Shifter femme sighed again and then put her head in her hands.

"It's not that I don't like it Jazz, it's the fact that it's the  _Decepticons_  they would kill Optimus without a second thought, I mean...how many Decepticons are there? There could be a hoard of Decepticons there and we'd never know. Also...Sam has...and I quote... _"Expressed a strong desire to have a normal life"_ and being kidnapped by Decepticons...well there goes his desire for a normal life" she said.

Jazz gave a bit of a smirk and another snort, before he shook his helm.

"Alexx, de boy ain't eva gon' have a normal life. 'Is fate be intertwined wiv ours de minute Captain Witwicky found Megsy an' Sam got 'is glasses" he stated.

Alexx nodded and then huffed.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Optimus)**

He rushed through the trees, the idea that the Decepticons had Sam running through his processor. What could they possibly want with Sam? As far as he was aware, Megatron was offline, but then again, there was that incident when a Decepticon broke into a military secure facility and stole a shard of the Allspark. So perhaps the Decepticons used that shard of the Allspark to revive their leader. Whatever they used it for, he was about to find out. As they came up to a large warehouse, Optimus transformed and Bumblebee did the same beside him, both activated their battle masks and then Bumblebee smashed his way through the walls of the warehouse, while Optimus climbed up the top and came crashing through the roof.

"Sam!" He called.

He then jumped over Megatron, firing his weapon at him as he did. As he landed, Starscream attacked him from the back, but he managed to batter him away before firing another weapon at him. Then he turned back towards Megatron and fired his weapon again at him, which hit the Decepticon leader square in the chest, sending him out of the side of the warehouse. He careened over Bumblebee as he was racing to get Mikaela and the other boy out of the area. Megatron then transformed and drove off in a different direction to that which Bumblebee was going and Optimus transformed and Sam got into his cab, before the Autobot leader drove off after Megatron.

Optimus and Sam chased Megatron into a forest area, thankfully away from the other humans. However, Megatron was in hiding and he ploughed through the trees behind Optimus and shot at him, causing the Autobot leader to transform and catch Sam as he fell. Megatron then transformed and threw himself at Optimus, causing the red and blue mech to drop Sam, thankfully though the boy had a soft landing.

"Hide Sam!" Optimus called.

While Sam was running down the hill towards a small collection of trees, Optimus and Megatron began to fight, with Grindor and Starscream watching in the sidelines for now. Megatron speared Optimus to the ground and the two of them began to slide across the wet grass, as they got up, Optimus picked up an uprooted tree and proceeded to hit Megatron over the helm with it.

"Weak" he said.

Then he hit Megatron's arm away from him.

"Puny" he said.

Optimus then punched Megatron in the back quite hard, causing pieces of armour to come flying off.

"Waste of- metal..." he began.

The Autobot leader then clotheslined Megatron, causing him to fall to the ground and roll away. Optimus followed him though and activated his energon sword, stabbing it through Megatron's shoulder plates.

"Junkyard- crap!" He finished.

Optimus then twisted Megatron's neck, making him fall over.

"Decepticons!" Megatron called.

Starscream and Grindor came to their leader's aid, swooping in and joining the fight. Though Starscream went after Sam, uprooting a tree and chasing after him.

"Come here boy" he hissed.

Sam ran, with Starscream close behind him. Megatron pushed Optimus away and then joined the pursuit of the boy. Though Optimus came out of nowhere and tackled Megatron to the ground. He and the Decepticon leader then began to fight again, while Sam ran away, this time though, Starscream joined in. Optimus caught Starscream as he started to fire at him and kicked him in the back, Megatron tried to join in, but Optimus kicked him away and picked Starscream up by his legs and swung him around, while the seeker was still firing his weapon. Optimus then kicked Starscream in the back of the head, sending him flying across the ground. While this was happening, Bumblebee, Ironhide and Sideswipe were racing to join the fight and help out their friend and leader.

Optimus knew what was going to happen here, he knew that there was no way he was going to be able to fight Megatron, Grindor  _and_ Starscream and live to tell the tale, but it was a no-brainer, he  _had_  to protect Sam. After all the boy had done for him and his Autobots, the red and blue mech owed the boy, he owed him big time and if giving his life for the human boy was a way of saying that they were even, then so be it. Sam ran over to a fallen tree and hid behind it.

"There is another source of Energon hidden on this planet, the boy could lead us to it" Megatron said.

Sam ran from behind the downed tree as Grindor picked Optimus up and shot him at close range before dropping him. As Optimus landed on his feet, Starscream slashed at him with his claws and then hit him on the head. Then Megatron joined in and picked Optimus up, slamming him through a load of trees, before delivering a roundhouse kick to Optimus' face. Sam was stunned at this.

"Optimus!" He yelled.

Optimus leaned over and spat out a denta and stood up. As he did this, Grindor shot at him and Optimus fell back but he got up and reeled backwards where Megatron elbowed him in the face. Optimus reeled around to try and attack Megatron, but the larger mech shot him, sending him flying backwards. Sam was running and just managed to duck down as Optimus landed near him.

"Is the future of our race not worth a single human life?" Megatron asked.

Sam looked over at Megatron and then looked back at Optimus.

"Up, Optimus get up!" He yelled.

Optimus got up onto one knee with his sword still activated.

"You'll never stop at one..." he began.

He then activated another Energon sword.

"I'll take you all on!" He exclaimed.

As Sam hid, Optimus began to fight with Megatron, Grindor and Starscream. He kicked Starscream away and chopped off Grindor's rotor blades and shot at Megatron. Starscream came up to him and Optimus slashed at him before turning around and slashing at Grindor. He then rolled over Starscream and turned around before slashing at Starscream again. He then stabbed one of his swords into Megatron's leg and pulled, making a deep gash in the Decepticon leader's leg. And then he stabbed Megatron in the gut and then punched him in the face twice. The last one sent Megatron flying. He then fought with Starscream, ripping his arm off and punching him in the face. He then jumped and stabbed an Energon hook into Grindor's face and climbed onto his back and using another Energon hook to rip Grindor's face in half, killing him instantly.

"Piece of tin" he said.

He then looked around.

"Sam where are you?" He asked.

While the Prime wasn't looking, Megatron came up behind him and activated his own sword, thrusting it through Optimus' chest, causing the Autobot leader to cry out in pain.

"You're so weak" Megatron said.

Then using his blaster, he blasted a hole in Optimus' chest. The mech fell to the ground and he looked at Sam.

"Sam, run...ru-" he said.

He trailed off as his optics died out.

Sam then ran away from where Optimus had fallen, running towards where Bumblebee, Ironhide, Mudflap, Skids, Sideswipe and Ratchet came into the clearing.

"Autobots attack!" Ironhide said.

Bumblebee opened his door and Sam got in.

"Bumblebee, get them out of here!" Ratchet called.

The Autobot scout did just that, leaving the others to force the remaining Decepticons into retreat.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(At The Base)**

Alexx was walking around the base, when she felt a stabbing pain in her chest. She groaned and clutched at it, falling to her knees with a thud. Tears began to fall down her face and she was finding it hard to breathe. A soldier hurried over to her and knelt down beside her before calling to another soldier who was qualified as a medic. Though when he got there, Alexx was on the floor unconscious. The soldiers looked at one another, just as Jazz came hurrying in. He saw Alexx on the floor and he knelt down, a solemn mood over him.

"What happened?" He asked.

The soldier who was with Alexx first just shook his head.

"I don't know, she just fell to the floor clutching her chest" he said.

Then Jazz received a transmission from Ratchet.

_**:Ratchet to Jazz:** _

_**:What?:** _

_**:Is something wrong?:** _

_**:Alexx just collapsed. De 'uman medic dun know why:** _

There was a rasping on the other end of the transmission, signifying that Ratchet had cycled his intakes.

_**:Megatron has just offlined Optimus:** _

Jazz sat there stunned, before he mentally shook his head.

_**:Dat don' explain why she collapsed:** _

_**:I will explain it when I return. Keep her safe Jazz:** _

The mech nodded to himself and transformed, activating his holoform he picked Alexx up and put her on his back seat, before deactivating his holoform and moving outside.


	19. Chapter 19

**(An Hour Later)**

An hour had passed and Alexx had finally woken up from her pain induced Mini Coma, though when she did, she wasn't herself at all. Jazz had broken the news of Optimus' demise tto her as carefully as he could, expecting her to be upset, but nothing could have prepared him for the mini panic attack and the emotional breakdown that followed. The Shifter femme practically dropped to her knees roaring with such anguish that his spark broke for her. He guessed he was lucky, he'd never lost a mate before, heck he'd never had a mate  _to_ lose so he wasn't privvy to the pain Alexx was in. Finally the Shifter femme cried herself to sleep in his arms and he cradled her to his chest, he knew that Ironhide, Ratchet, the others and the soldiers would return with Optimus' corpse and he had a feeling that Alexx would want to see the Autobot leader.

Carefully, he cast his gaze over the sleeping femme in his arms, she always looked so peaceful when she was sleeping, though he preferred it when she'd fallen asleep naturally rather than falling asleep because she was crying. He cycled his intakes and looked forward, this was the second time he'd seen her cry and he didn't like it anymore than he had last time. He had to admit, he and the other three seemed to be doing more harm than good and there were times when he wished that she hadn't met them, he knew that it was bad of him, but that was how he felt. Suddenly, he felt a presence next to him and he opened his rear right passenger window to see a soldier stood there.

"How is she?" He asked.

Jazz cycled his intakes again and looked down at Alexx, moving a bit of hair from her forehead.

"She woke up a while ago, bu' when I told 'er 'bout Optimus' offlinin' she cried 'erself ta sleep 'gain" he replied.

The soldier nodded and sighed before he rubbed his eyes and yawned before looking back at the sleeping femme.

"Ya know...I always wanted to know...how is it that she's your mate she's sorta human. Don't you gotta like...be mated with another Cybertronian?" He asked.

Jazz opened his mouth to speak, but then he closed it again and frowned. How was he supposed to answer that when he didn't even know the answer himself?

"Uh...ya'd 'ave ta ask The Hatchet 'bout dat, 'cause I don't got a clue 'ow it works" he said.

The soldier nodded and then scratched the back of his neck in a comical way while chuckling nervously.

"I don't mean ta be rude or anything-" he began.

Jazz just shook his head and smiled.

"Naw, I get it. Yer curious" he said.

The soldier smiled too and then cleared his throat.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(A Few Hours Later)**

A few hours passed and finally Ironhide, Ratchet, Sideswipe, the soldiers and Optimus' corpse arrived back at the base in New Jersey. Of course, they were minus Mudflap, Skids, Bumblebee, Sam, Mikaela and the other human male, but as soon as Ironhide, Ratchet and Sideswipe transformed, military officers got out of cars and aimed weapons at them.

"What is the meaning of this?" Sideswipe asked.

Soldiers started yelling and Will was yelling at the military officers to put down their weapons. Ironhide was getting all frumpy about it.

"You dare point a gun at me? You want a piece of me? I will tear you apart!" He said.

As this was going on, Alexx who had woken up ten minutes earlier, had walked out of the base and as soon as she saw Optimus' body tears gathered in her eyes again and she walked over to him, climbing up onto his body and looking into his darkened optics. Back over with the soldiers, Will was beginning to get irate, he banged his hands on the hood of one of the cars.

"Drop your weapons! Drop your weapons!" He yelled.

A military officer got out of the car and Will got into his personal space.

"Tell them to drop their weapons" he said.

The officer just continued to walk.

"Tell them first" he countered.

Will almost growled and got into the man's face.

"Tell them to lower their weap-" he began.

But the military officer cut him off.

"Major, there's nothing I can do. Talk to him" he said.

As he said this, Galloway got out of the car and looked right at Will.

"Your NEST team is being deactivated Major. You are to cease anti-Decepticon operations and return to Diego Garcia pending further orders" he said.

Will shook his head.

"No we take our orders directly from Chairman Morshower sir" he said.

Galloway nodded.

"Well I'll see your Chairman of the Chiefs of staff and I will raise you a President of the United States. I have operational command now. An alien bloodbath has been brought to our shores for which our soldiers are paying the price" he said.

During his little rant, Alexx had climbed down from Optimus and had slowly made her way over to stand near the plane that was next to the car. Galloway turned to the Autobots.

"The secret is out! This is our war now and we will win it the way we always have, with a coordinated military strategy" he said.

Ratchet huffed a little.

"This fool is terribly misinformed" he said.

Will nodded at Ratchet and turned to Galloway again.

"You're gonna need every asset you've got" he said.

Galloway narrowed his eyes a little.

"What we need is to draw up battle plans while we explore every diplomatic solution" he stated.

Will mirrored his look.

"Like what, handing over the kid?" He asked.

Galloway just looked at him.

"All options are being considered" he said.

He walked over to the car when a soldier who was like a best friend to Alexx and Will piped up.

"Whatever the Decepticons are after, this is just the start" he said.

Will nodded in agreement.

"There  _is_ no negotiating with them" he said. _  
_

Galloway then got up in Will's face and Alexx prepared to pounce on him if he started to threaten or harm her adoptive father.

"I'm ordering you to stand down" he ordered.

He then ripped a badge off of Will's uniform.

"You won't be needing this anymore" he said.

As he'd been talking now, Alexx had crept over to the front of the vehicle, ready to give Galloway a piece of her mind when he said something that angered not only her, but Thera too.

"Get your assets back to base, and take that pile of scrap metal back to Diego Garcia" he said.

Will turned and started to walk away just as Galloway opened the door to get into the car, only to have it slammed with a hand on the window.

"What did you just say?" Alexx asked.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Will)**

He couldn't believe what a downright prick this guy was being. Galloway had angered him so much that he  _had_ to walk away before he did something stupid and regrettable. He didn't turn when he heard the door slam shut, but he  _did_ turn when he heard the chilling tone of Alexx's voice.

"What did you just say?" She asked.

The tone of her voice and the ridgedness of her posture suggested that she was trying to keep her anger at bay, he guessed it was all she could do to stop herself from physically shaking with repressed ire. The military officers now aimed their weapons at her and this made Ironhide, Jazz and Ratchet activate their weapons too. Alexx turned and looked at them, her eyes cold and hard but with a fire burning in their depths. He couldn't see, but if he were to hazard a guess, her eyes would be switching from hazel to green and back again right about now.

"You action men can put your little toys down, none of your ammunition will hit me and you will end up hitting your beloved pimp here. Not only that, but should you hit me with one of your bullets you would have  _them_ on your asses so fucking fast you wouldn't be able to say Jack. And  _you_!" She said.

She pointed to the Autobots when she said  _them_ and poked Galloway in the chest when she said  _you_. Said man just looked at her and she pressed him against the car door.

"I really,  _really_ hope to god that I didn't just hear you call one of my  _mates_ what I  _think_  I just heard you call one of my mates" she said.

Her voice had dropped into a threatening tone, one that even had Will reaching for his gun holster. Galloway just gave her a look.

"I called  _it_  what  _it_ is" he said.

Alexx nodded and turned as if she were going to walk away before acting as if she thought better of it and she delivered a punch directly to his nose, knocking his glasses off his face. The soldiers around them all sucked in a deep breath and chuckled about it, muttering unintelligible things. Galloway got straight up and put his glasses back on, holding his nose.

"Young lady, do you know who I am? I am Theodore Galloway, Director of Operations here and I work for the Presid-" he began.

Alexx however cut him off again by slamming him up against the side of the car again.

"I don't give a  _fuck_  who you thing you are and I certainly don't give a flying fuck who you  _work_  for. That Mech over there is  _not_  a pile of scrap metal, his name was Optimus Prime and he was ten  _billion_ times the man you could ever  _hope_ to be" she said.

She then pushed at him and walked off. Though Galloway got a smirk on his face, if this girl wanted trouble, he'd make sure she landed in so  _much_  trouble that she would rue the day she met him.

"Man or not, it doesn't change the fact that he's a pile of scrap metal" he said.

Alexx stopped dead and Will gave a concerned look towards her, a look that turned to fear when he saw Ironhide shifting uncomfortably. As far as he was aware, Ironhide wasn't afraid of anything, but something about Alexx at the moment was making him uneasy and that made Will uneasy.

"Alexx?" He ventured.

The Shifter femme moved so fast that he didn't have time to catch her before she was rolling around in the sand with Galloway. She delivered punch after punch after punch to his mid section, before she picked his head up by his ears and started banging the back of his head in the rock hard ground.

"Somebody get this freak off of me!" Galloway yelled.

However the word  _freak_ seemed to spur the femme on and this time she started to scratch and bite at him. The military officers were immediately on her and trying to haul her off, but as soon as they got her off of him, she was back on him again beating on him some more. Ratchet was concerned, he'd never seen her this angry before and he looked to Jazz who seemed entirely neutral to the situation.

_**:Ratchet to Jazz, what is going on?:** _

_**:Jazz, ah dunno Ratch, but dat ain't Alexx, dat's Thera:** _

Ratchet was immediately alarmed by this and his alarm caused Ironhide to become alert too. But Jazz pinged him again.

_**:She ain't gonna kill 'im doc. Somethin' happened ta 'er while youse was out. I dunno what it was, bu' if wha' I read back on Cybertron was right, she an' Prime formed a bond some'ow:** _

Ratchet glared at Jazz slightly.

_**:That is impossible Jazz, spark bonds only happen between sparks. It cannot happen between human and Cybertronians. For one, humans do not possess sparks:** _

_**:Well she sure actin' angry fer a femme who ain't just lost 'er spark mate:** _

Ratchet cycled his intakes, he would indeed need to check her over because this behaviour was indeed very much out of the ordinary for her. He watched as Will now got into the fray and managed to pull Alexx off of Galloway, but the femme was still struggling to get back at him.

"You little maggot. You better get in your little car and get the fuck outta here and if I ever see your pathetic little face again, I'mma rip your fucking balls off and force feed 'em to ya, then I'mma skin ya layer by layer then I'm gonna gut ya and if you're lucky and I'm feeling in a generous mood, I might kill you first!" She yelled.

Galloway paled at this considerably and looked to Will who seemed to be having trouble holding her.

"You'd better go before I lose my grip" he said.

The Director nodded and got into the car quickly. Will then let Alexx go and the femme walked over to Jazz, who crouched down and offered a claw to her. She hugged it and cried her eyes out then Ratchet turned to Ironhide.

"Ironhide, we should leave this planet" he said.

The weapons specialist shook his helm.

"That's not what Optimus would want and Alexx needs us now more than ever" he said.

Ratchet cycled his intakes and nodded.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Ratchet)**

As he walked into the New Jersey base, he called upon Alexx, who walked over to him. He crouched down and offered his servo to her, which she climbed upon.

"Jazz informed me that you acquired pain in your chest somewhen during the day" he stated.

Alexx nodded and rubbed the spot where it was.

"It was like I was stabbed in the chest before being shot" she said.

Ratchet frowned, it sounded like the same injuries that Optimus received, the same injuries that offlined him. He cycled his intakes and began to scan her, finding something that shocked even him. One of his scans produced a reading that was very much like Optimus' readings, signifying that a bond had indeed been formed.

"When you mated with Optimus, did his chest plates open?" He asked.

Alexx looked at him and then shook her head.

"No, he used his human holo" she said.

The medimech nodded and then the femme sighed.

"You're angry at me huh?" She asked.

Ratchet gave her a glare, before his optics softened.

"No, I am not angry at you. I am disappointed that you didn't trust us enough to deal with the information we were given, it was a lot to process" he said.

Alexx looked up into his blue optics and tears started running down her face again.

"It just -it just felt like you were setting me up to go to the brig or something" she said.

The mech gave a short whine and shook his helm.

"Optimus...as soon as you left the base in Diego Garcia, Optimus found a memory file of one of the soldiers telling him that you had only offlined a man who had harmed an equine, William had backed up Optimus' forming theory when he said that when he and Ironhide found you, you had a canine with you and both the canine and you were covered in blood" he explained.

Alexx looked up and then wiped at her eyes.

"I'm tired Ratchet" she said.

She yawned as she said his name and the mech nodded and put her down, transforming and opening his door for her. Alexx got into his alt form and curled up on one of the seats drifting into a dreamless sleep.


	20. Chapter 20

**(A Few Hours Later)**

A few hours had passed and after the altercation between Galloway and Alexx the former had decided that keeping away from the latter would be the best course of action. In fact, the Shifter Femme had scared him so much that every time he saw her, he would either hide or walk the other way, he wouldn't even  _look_ at her which was absolutely fine with her. Alexx had been sitting with Optimus' corpse for most of the few hours and even though they were in New Jersey, the weather was prone to changes and the air was beginning to become chilled. Thankfully, Ratchet had come out with a human blanket and wrapped it around her which she was thankful for, the mech also activated his holoform for a few minutes and hugged her before going back to what he was doing. Soon, Alexx noticed some movement over by the plane and using her feline balance and agility, she slid down Optimus' form and made her way over to the plane where Will was.

"What's going on Will?" She asked.

The soldier looked at her and the corners of his mouth quirked up a bit before he looked around and spotted Galloway and Graham looking out of the base. He frowned and moved his hand to hover over her lower back to move her away from prying eyes and as soon as they were hidden he began to speak.

"We've just received word that Sam Witwicky's found something that could possibly... _possibly_ bring the big guy back" he said.

He almost smiled when he saw her eyes light up for a few minutes, before they went back to what they were before and his smile faltered. The Shifter femme brought a hand up to rub at her eyes and a yawn forced its way past her lips, she then looked at her adoptive father and nodded.

"Good, I'll come with you" she said.

Will raised an eyebrow, crossed his arms over his chest and narrowed his eyes.

"Alexx you're-" he began.

The Shifter femme just glared at him and mimicked his poise before she spoke, effectively cutting him off.

"Will, any chance to bring Optimus back I'm gonna take. I don't care how dangerous it's gonna be or anything, all I care about is getting Optimus back" she stated.

The man sighed and rubbed his face with both hands before dropping them to his side.

"You do know that Galloway's not gonna let us do this alone right?" He asked.

Alexx raised an eyebrow at him and then rubbed her lips with the tips of her fingers before nodding.

"Then we're gonna have to find a way to get Galloway  _out_  of the plane before we get to the drop zone" she replied.

Will smirked at her and put his hand on her shoulder before pulling her in for a hug, one which she reciprocated and then they both walked out from the hiding place, prompting Galloway to give a suspicious glance to them. Alexx looked at him and glared raising her lip a little in a snarl causing the spectacle clad man to look away hurriedly which made the Shifter femme chuckle to herself. She walked into the temporary base and walked up to Jazz opening his door and sliding in, the mech immediately activated his holoform.

"What'd ya talk 'bout wit Will?" He asked.

Alexx looked over at the mech and gave a genuine smile before she climbed into his lap and pressed her lips to his. Stunned, the mech took a second to respond before he placed his hands on her hips and pulled his head away as far as he could with his seat's headrest in the way.

"Wha'?" He questioned.

The Shifter femme chuckled and buried her nose in his neck, grabbing onto the straps of his tank top and took in a shuddering breath.

"Will told me that the kid Sam Witwicky may've found a way to bring Optimus back" she said.

The man beneath her stiffened and she looked up at his face, which was frozen in a state of shock. She raised her hand and put it against his cheek which seemed to sober him up.

"'ow's he gonna do dat?" He inquired.

Alexx shrugged but smiled and chuckled none-the-less.

"I dunno, but I really hope it works" she replied.

Jazz smiled and leaned up to nuzzle her cheek.

"Ah'm just glad yer smilin' 'gain" he said.

The Shifter femme nodded and nuzzled him back before she leaned her head against his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his back as much as she could.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(An hour later)**

After getting everything ready, loading Optimus' corpse into a C-17 and loading the other Autobots into another C-17, the soldiers plus Galloway and Alexx got themselves into the same C-17 that Optimus' corpse was in. Of course, Will had told Galloway that they were heading back to Diego Garcia so it didn't look too suspicious and they were on their way. Though they were apart, Alexx and Galloway kept glaring at each other, well Galloway would glare at Alexx when he wasn't looking at his computer screen, the intensity of the glares though meant that if looks could kill, not only would the computer upon Galloway's lap have exploded, but both would be dead in a matter of seconds. The Shifter femme looked at Will, who looked as stoic and as professional as ever and she sighed, crossing her arms over her chest and closing her eyes, though her body posture was rigid and boasted a closed off aura.

"Someone's feeling anti-social" Galloway said.

Alexx opened one of her eyes and growled at him, why the hell did he have to come along anyway, didn't he have a helicopter to take him back to Diego Garcia? And just what did Will tell him to make him so sure about himself? She closed her eye again and shuffled her shoulders against the wall of the plane, scratching an itch that she wouldn't be able to reach with her hand.

"Can it turd" she muttered.

Galloway looked up from his computer screen and gave a bit of a smirk. As much as this girl kinda scared him, he wanted to see just how far he could push her. If she did him some more damage, maybe he could get her banned from the base, whether these alien robots were her mates or not.

"Name calling now are we? How very mature" he snipped.

However, that sentence didn't get the desired reaction, instead the femme just allowed a large smirk to appear upon her features and she took in a deep breath almost as if she were stretching or yawning.

"I call it how I see it Galloway. If it looks like a turd, acts like a turd and smells like a turd...it's a turd" she countered.

Galloway's smirk fell and he inwardly cursed himself for not thinking of something so witty. Then another smirk reformed upon his features and he looked over at the femme.

"Well, at least now you know how I can spot a freak. And you girl...are a freak" he stated.

In several seconds, Alexx had opened her eyes, unclipped her belt and got up off of her seat and was now advancing towards Galloway and she would've hit him, if Will hadn't stepped in the way with his hands on her shoulders.

"Lets...not bring the plane down hmm? Alexx sit down" he said.

He then turned towards Galloway and gave him a glare. The Shifter femme just growled and she didn't do as the soldier had told her, causing him to turn around and glare at her.

"Sit down now!" He commanded.

Alexx glanced at him and then back at Galloway, growling again before going to sit back down. Will sighed and just shook his head, going to sit back in his seat next to the wretched man, who was still smirking.

"So obedient...like a dog" he said.

Again Will had to rise from his seat to stop Alexx from hitting Galloway and this time when the Shifter femme sat back down, he turned back towards Galloway and raised an eyebrow.

"Don't anger her...you saw what she did to you last time" he said.

Galloway just smirked as Will sat back down next to him.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(30 minutes later)**

Alexx now had her eyes closed again and was resting against the wall while Galloway was reading a small booklet of papers. He wasn't really taking it in, he was simply trying to distract himself from the seemingly sleeping Shifter. He continued to read, until a tannoy announcement from the pilot made him look up.

 _ **"We've had an engine malfunction, we're gonna have to divert to SOCCENT. Flight master, let's lighten the load and prepare to bailout"**  _he said.

As the pilot said the last part, Alexx had opened her eyes and Will had leaned forward with a look of confusion on his face, though the Shifter femme could tell that he was simply playing it up for Galloway, who was beginning to panic.

"Bailout? Bailout?" He asked.

He looked around, getting more and more panicked as the soldiers started moving and muttering among themselves.

"Bailout? Bailout?" He continued.

Will got up and went through the standard procedure for such a thing.

"All right, team, grab your chutes!" He ordered.

Galloway was still panicking as the soldiers got up and started to reach for their parachutes.

"Bailout like bailout?" He asked.

Will grabbed a chute for Galloway and hurried back over to him with it.

"You familiar with the standard MC-4?" He asked.

He began to help Galloway to put his chute on while the other soldiers around did the same.

"Of course not! I've never jumped out of a perfectly good airplane before" he said.

Will moved Galloway so that he was facing him and started to sort things out on the front.

"Wait a minute, is this really happening?" Galloway asked.

Epps pulled his pack up and as a result knocked Galloway with it, a smile upon his face.

"Yeah" Will said.

He knelt down and pulled the lines from the back around the front and did them up.

"All right, here we go" he said.

Galloway continued to look around, upset about the situation and the fact that he'd just been shoved.

"Wait a minute. Wait a minute. You're behind this aren't you?" He asked.

Will looked up at him with a confused face and shook his head.

"What are you talking about? You heard the pilot, these guys don't mess around" he said.

He pulled a couple of lines and the other lines tightened a little bit as he got up.

"This is just standard procedure. I'm just following orders to the letter" he said.

He grabbed both of the lines and yanked so that they tightened around Galloway's crotch.

"Isn't that what you said?" He asked.

Galloway cried out as the lines tightened around his family jewels and then he glared at Will.

"You just signed a death warrant on your career Major" he said.

Then a loud thud was heard on the outside of the plane and it started to shake.

"What was that? What was that?" Galloway asked.

The plane continued to shake and Will looked around, a look of mock concern on his face.

"Oh that's not good" he said.

He moved off and pulled Galloway with him.

"Come on" he said.

The other soldiers were all talking and muttering amongst themselves as Will pulled Galloway with him.

"Right this way" he said.

Galloway was floundering behind the soldier, acting like a scared little mouse.

"I can't jump out of an aeroplane! I have an ulcer!" He exclaimed.

Will pressed a button and the loading ramp began to lower while he pulled Galloway towards the door.

"No, no" Galloway said.

Will continued to pull Galloway with him.

"Come on. It's okay" he said.

Galloway clung to Will as the ramp went down more.

"I really can't do this. What are you doing..." he said.

Will pulled hard on his chute straps.

"Come here! Come here" he said.

Galloway was whimpering as Will pulled him in front of him.

"Why aren't you wearing your chute?" Galloway asked.

Will looked at him and made a 'duh' face.

"Because I have to secure the VIPs first" he yelled.

The roaring of the engines made it hard for Galloway to hear Will and Alexx, who was putting her own chute on with the help of Epps silently grinned at the way Galloway was panicking. Though she had to admit that she was a little scared too.

"Okay, I want you to listen very carefully and memorise everything I say" Will said.

As he said 'memorise everything I say' he tapped his head and Galloway whimpered an agreement of sorts. Will nodded and made sure that his voice was in the wind while Galloway whimpered.

"Each chute has a GPS tracker so you can be found by Search and Rescue. Right next to that's a fabric webbing called a bridle" he said.

As he said this he held up the webbing.

"Which holds the pin that keeps the main container closed" he said.

Galloway whimpered and held his head.

"Okay, are you listening?" Will asked.

Galloway shook his head.

"I can't hear what..." he began.

Will slapped his face and Galloway whimpered again.

"Stop that!" Will yelled.

Galloway kept whimpering and nodded.

"All right. All right" he whimpered.

Will nodded.

"All right, when the pilot chute inflates into the air, it pulls the pin and opens the main" he said.

Galloway nodded, still not really understanding what Will was saying.

"Red's your backup, blue's your primary. I want you to pull the blue" Will said.

The spectacle clad man looked at the blue pin and Will made a pulling motion with his hand.

"I need you to pull it really hard!" He yelled.

Galloway pulled the pin and Will put his hands up.

"Not- not now, we're on the plane, you dumb-ass!" He yelled.

Galloway looked at him shocked and then he was pulled out of the back of the plane by his chute and Will pressed the button to close up the loading ramp. Epps came up to him and looked out of the rapidly closing door.

"He say goodbye?" He asked.

Will shook his head.

"No he didn't even say goodbye" he replied.

Then they all sat back down again, though they knew that they were coming close to the drop zone. Will looked at Alexx, who was chuckling quietly to herself, she looked at him and schooled her features, though laughter was still in her eyes.

"What's so funny?" Will asked.

Alexx couldn't help it, she burst out laughing and shook her head.

"Did you see his face? The twerp looked like he was about to pee his pants!" She cackled.

Will chuckled and shook his head, getting up and moving over to her where he tousled her hair, of course she didn't like that and she pulled away.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(20 Minutes Later)**

Will once again called for everyone to get themselves ready as they were coming up to the drop zone. The soldiers got themselves ready but Alexx was apprehensive about the whole thing. Will came up to her and put his hand on her shoulder.

"You alright?" He asked.

Alexx looked at him and then nodded, but she was wringing her hands together and Will came to stand in front of her, bending his knees slightly so he could look into her eyes.

"You're gonna be fine Alexx. When have I  _ever_ put you in harms way?" He asked.

The Shifter femme looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"How about when you brought an alien robot home with you the first time?" She asked back.

Will chuckled and wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"But you weren't exactly scared of him now were you?" He questioned.

Alexx shook her head but then chuckled nervously.

"But that was Ironhide and right now I think I'd rather take Ironhide's cannons over jumping out of an aeroplane" she replied.

The soldier smiled and rubbed her shoulder.

"You'll be alright" he said.

He then left her to walk over to the button for the loading ramp and he pressed it as they got over the drop zone. Optimus' corpse was dropped out first and the soldiers jumped out next with Alexx and Will going first. The other Autobots then jumped out of the other plane and then everyone pulled their chutes, though the Autobots as well as Optimus all had remote chutes that went off as soon as they were the right height. They all glided down to the white sand below and stripped off their chutes.

"Go!" Will ordered.

All the soldiers started moving as soon as they had their chutes off.

"Let's move it. Remember, they're friendlies" Will said.

The Autobots transformed and drove across the sand towards a more sheltered area while the locals herded their goats away from the action. The soldiers, with their weapons at the ready moved across the sand like ninjas. They all moved towards Optimus who was extremely exposed.

"Cover Optimus!" Graham called.

Optimus' corpse was then covered with the chute that was laying around him. Will looked around at the locals.

"Secure the village. Get those cases down here" he said.

Soldiers went up to the cases and picked them up, taking them down to Will.

"I need snipers and Stingers up high" Will called.

Epps had his weapon trained where he could see if anyone was approaching.

"So, we just dropped off ten tonnes of dead robot in the middle of nowhere" he said.

He cautiously looked around to see if Alexx had heard him call Optimus 'Ten tonnes of dead robot' as Will approached him.

"I hope this little kid know what he's doing" he said.

Will nodded and looked around.

"Yeah, me too" he said.

Alexx, who didn't have a weapon was just looking around before she walked up to Epps and Will.

"What'm I gonna do?" She asked.

Will looked over at her and pointed to a case.

"You're gonna sit there" he said.

Alexx gave him a deadpanned look.

"I can't just sit here and do nothing!" She exclaimed.

Will raised an eyebrow.

"That's exactly what you're gonna do. Alexx I brought you out here for Optimus, I'm not gonna let you get hurt before you can see him revived" he said.

Alexx gave a growl and went and sat on the case.

"Fine!" She groaned.

Up on the buildings, the soldiers were looking out with binoculars and making sure that their weapons were at the ready, in case of an attack. Then Graham yelled over to Will.

"Got a visual! Yellow team! Four clicks!" He yelled.

Will turned around and used his hands to shield his eyes from the sun like a baseball cap's peak. He then removed his hands.

"Pop flare!" He yelled back.

Graham pulled the flare gun out of his belt and aimed it up, pulling the trigger. As he did this, a F-22 raptor was flying over head and started shooting in the general direction that the kid was coming from. Will and the others couldn't do anything but watch, considering the 'yellow team' was too far away for their aid. Alexx just sat on the case and sighed, putting her chin on her hand...with her elbow rested on her knee. The F-22 flew overhead again and Epps looked up at it with a pair of binoculars.

"That thing's got alien tattoos all over it. That ain't Air Force" he said.

Alexx looked up and watched as the jet did a half barrel roll and her sensitive ears picked up the pulse that it emitted. She looked back to Will who seemed to have heard something over the earpiece he was wearing.

"What the hell was that?" He asked.

Epps pressed something on his flak jacket and tried to contact other people through his mic and earpiece.

"Anyone copy?" He asked.

Will held his hand up to his ear and looked around.

"Anyone there? Who's up?" He questioned.

Epps still tried his mic and earpiece and so did Will before they gave up.

"Radio's down" one soldier said.

Will pulled his earpiece off and threw it to the ground.

"It's dead. Comms are down" he said.

Epps shuffled on his feet uneasily and licked his lips.

"EMP burst" he said.

He then looked over at Will.

"I see how this day is going in this godforsaken desert" he said.

He then walked off and Alexx sighed. She resumed the same poise that she had before, the heat beginning to make sweat bead on her forehead, the fronts of her hair beginning to stick to it like glue.

"It's soooo hot" she complained.

Will looked at her and shook his head.

"Suck it up girl, deserts are hot" he stated.

Alexx gave him a 'no shit Sherlock' look and leaned back against part of the dusty ruins. As she did this, the locals were moving their livestock away from the impending attack. They took their camels past Sideswipe and away from the area, Epps shook his head.

"Nothing" he said.

Will, who was now standing under Epps and Alexx looked at one of his soldiers.

"Right go burn an SOS, let the eye in the sky know we need some help" he said.

The soldier nodded.

"Yes, sir" he said.

He then ran over to the others and they drew an SOS out of vegetation and set it on fire.

"Pop some more flares so the kid can find us" one soldier said.

Alexx stood up and went to stand next to Epps, looking out over the sand.

"God this is boring" she said.

Epps nodded.

"Waitin' often is" he said.

Alexx sighed again and looked around. Jazz, Sideswipe, Ironhide, Ratchet and the Arcee triplets were still all transformed. Then there was movement.

"We've got incoming!" A soldier yelled.

The Shifter femme looked up and jumped off the building that she was on, hurrying over to one of the ruins when she saw seven meteors fall to Earth.

"No way is that just a natural thing" she muttered

She moved over to another ruin and hid behind it.

"We got a whole lot of fight coming our way" Will said.

He went and hid near to a ruin with a window of mesh and Epps ran over to him.

"How many?" Will asked.

Graham sorted out his weapon.

"About thirteen of them" he said.

Epps looked around, holding his gun and panicking a little.

"This ain't good. This ain't good" he said.

Alexx watched as the meteors transformed into Decepticons and then she moved over to where Will was.

"What're you doing here?" He asked.

The Shifter femme raised an eyebrow.

"I can help. I'm not a useless piece of machinery you know" she replied.

Epps backed up while still looking around.

"We're about to get our asses whupped" he said.

The Autobots transformed and Will grabbed Alexx's hand, pulling him over to where Ironhide, Sideswipe, Jazz and Ratchet were. The Shifter femme looked up at her mechs.

"Be careful, the lot of you" she said.

Ratchet looked down at her and gave a nod as did Ironhide and Jazz just gave a small smile. Will let her go and she ran over to stand next to a wall.

"All right, those Decepticons are searching for Sam" he said.

He knelt down next to Epps and motioned around.

"Whatever he has, he thinks it'll bring Optimus back to life. So our mission is to find him and get him to Optimus" he said.

He then glanced around.

"All right, we're gonna draw fire from the left flank. I need a scout team" he said.

Ironhide stood up.

"I'm leading" he said.

Will pointed to where they needed to go.

"Go up through the middle with Arcee and Ironhide!" He ordered.

When they had gone, Will looked at the remaining team. Of course, that team didn't include Alexx.

"All right, when you see the precious cargo, I want you to pop green smoke and come back through those pillars" he said.

He motioned to the pillars.

"We'll have the ambush set. All right. Let's go. Move out!" He hollered.

Alexx sighed and looked up at Ratchet.

"You think I'll be able to do anything worthwhile here?" She asked.

The medimech looked down at her while keeping a scanner on the direction the Decepticons were.

"I believe William is right Alexx. We do not wish for you to become injured" he replied.

The Shifter femme sighed and shook her head.

"But I'm boooored. Everyone has a job to do and I'm stood around like a freakin' pansy!" She whined.

Jazz chuckled.

"Yeah, bu' at least yer a cute pansy" he said.

Alexx looked over at him.

"Not helping" she said.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

Alexx watched as the Decepticons trashed the place looking for Sam and then she saw something that made her skin prickle. A cat-like Decepticon was running around over there helping with the search for Sam. Then the F-22 robot pulled off a roof and Alexx gasped a little.

"Fall back!" Sideswipe ordered the humans.

The humans did start to run back behind the Autobots.

"Ironhide up the middle" he said.

Will looked at Ironhide, who had a tailgate full of soldiers.

"Ironhide, move it!" He yelled.

Chromia, Elita and Arcee followed him and the soldiers. Alexx itched to go out there and get into a fight with that feline Decepticon, but she knew that if she did then the mechs would blame themselves for letting her get hurt. She started pacing and growled, that is until she saw two humans be thrown out of a Decepticon. That was it, she shifted and started to run towards the two humans, ignoring the calls of Ratchet and Jazz, she got there as Sam got there and she tackled the feline Decepticon while the other two humans were yelling at Sam, who was trying to bargain with the Decepticon. A whistling sound was heard and vaguely Alexx saw Sam look over at one of the ruins. He kept talking before he yelled Bumblebee and Alexx got into the fight she wanted when the yellow bot came from the top of an abandoned building and jumped on one of the Decepticons.

The feline-like Decepticon shot hip mounted guns at Alexx, who managed to dodge all but one of them, which embedded itself into her side causing her to yowl. But she kept going, knowing that it would heal. The Decepticon then trod on her front paw, snapping it in two, she yowled again and the Decepticon picked her up in its jowls and threw her. She hit a wall and fell down, trying to get up, but the pain in her side was too much and she fell down again. The feline-like Decepticon then jumped on Bumblebee who grabbed him and ripped his spine out through his tail killing him instantly. The Shifter femme watched all this from her spot and when the three humans moved, she found the willpower to get up and follow. She watched as the two humans ran off and then she Shifted, following Sam and Mikaela while also keeping her arm cradled. Thankfully the wound on her side had healed a little so she wasn't dropping that much blood, but the pain was still there.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(A few minutes later)**

Alexx made her way over to where Sam and Mikaela were, she saw Ironhide running into view as one of the triplets saw them.

"Spotted Sam" one said.

Ironhide turned towards them.

"Sam!" He called.

Sam cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Ironhide!" He yelled.

Elita came over to them.

"Follow us to the pillars. We'll take you to Optimus" she said.

She then turned around as she was blasted and killed. Alexx winced and stopped holding her arm. Though it was still swollen and a little malformed she didn't care, it wasn't as painful anymore, though she knew it would need to be rebroken and reset later on.

"Get out Sam! Get to the pillars!" Ironhide yelled.

Alexx ushered Sam and Mikaela along as Chromia was then blasted and killed by a Decepticon. She took Sam and Mikaela towards the pillars, growling when a Decepticon almost saw them. She pushed Sam and Mikaela up against a wall as the Decepticon went past.

"Who are you?" Mikaela asked.

The Shifter femme looked at her.

"You really wanna know that now or you wanna get to Optimus?" She questioned.

The brunette nodded and then Alexx ran out, Sam and Mikaela following her. More Decepticons came and Alexx growled again.

"Get over to the pillars!" She yelled.

The two humans nodded and ran as Alexx ran over to one of the Decepticons and used her strength to pull a cable from its housing on his foot. The Decepticon cried out and overbalanced, falling to the floor. Alexx then ran over to where Sam and Mikaela were, but she got shot in the leg by a small weapon. It was obvious that it wasn't a Decepticon weapon, but she didn't think about that, she just grunted and fell over. Looking down at the wound, she saw that the bullet was still in there so she reached in and pulled it out before getting up and hobbling towards the two humans, running with them towards the pillars as much as she could. However, Megatron ran into the fray. Alexx was a little behind, which was a good thing as more weapons were being fired at them. Will and Epps went over to rescue Sam and Mikaela.

""Come on! Mikaela!" He yelled.

Sam and Mikaela ran to the building ruins where Will was taking shelter.

"Look who showed up" he said.

He then looked over at Sam.

"You better have a good reason for us to be here" he said.

Sam nodded and Mikaela looked around.

"Where's the other girl?" She asked.

But her question was blocked out by the sound of gunfire.

"Where's Optimus?" Sam asked.

Will motioned to him.

"He's right over there across the courtyard" he said.

Sam held up his sock.

"I gotta get to him right now" he said.

Will shook his head.

"Not with an air strike coming" he stated.

Sam emphasised with the sock.

"I have to get to him right now" he said.

Will looked up and saw a Decepticon coming so he moved Mikaela and Sam back.

"Go. Back, back, back, back" he said.

The Decepticon fired a weapon at one of the tanks. Then there was the sound of a jet.

"Incoming!" A voice called.

The jet then transformed into Jetfire. While this was happening, Alexx was hiding. She now had another wound to her hip, which was making it even harder for her to walk. She could vaguely hear voices, one of the voices saying that she needed to be alive and as unharmed as possible.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Sometime later)**

After all was done, Sam and Mikaela were reunited and Optimus was alive again. However, Mikaela asked a very good question.

"Where's the other girl?" She asked.

Will looked at her.

"What other girl?" He questioned.

Mikaela looked at him.

"There was a girl with us, she had short black hair and hazel eyes" she replied.

Dread filled Will's heart and he immediately began to look around for Alexx.

"Ratchet, is Alexx with you?" He called.

The medimech shook his helm.

"No! She ran to help Sam's parental units!" He called back.

Will's heart dropped and when Ratchet saw Will's face, his spark dropped too.

"No" he said.

He immediately ran into the fray and began to search for Alexx. Meanwhile, said Shifter femme was laying where she had hidden, a dart now hanging out the side of her neck. Two soldiers walked up to her and looked at each other.

"The boss is gonna go crazy for this" one said.

The other slapped the first man upside the head.

"Yeah, if only 'cause you damaged her" he chastised.

The first man scoffed.

"Super healing. She's one of those abominations" he said.

The other man sighed and shook his head, before bending down and picking the femme up, slinging her over his shoulder.

"Lets just get back" he said.

The first man sighed.

"Dylan...calm down will ya" he said.


	21. Chapter 21

**(Somewhere In The Desert)**

A dusty vehicle pulled up to the abandoned prison and went through the standard security checks before it drove up to the building, two men exited the Jeep and went around to the back right door. The taller man pulled out a body bag that had air holes in it and he tossed it over his shoulder while the shorter man closed the door.

"You're gonna hurt her if you treat her like that" he said.

The taller man gave him a glare before he bumped the body bag up a little on his shoulder and turned to walk into the prison. The shorter man shook his head and followed. They walked down a series of halls, ignoring the pleas from the cells and heading towards what would've been the warden's office, as soon as they got there the shorter man knocked on the door. Both men waited for a confirmation of their entrance and when it came the shorter man opened the door and walked in, the taller man followed, dumping the body bag on the floor with a thud.

"What did I say about doing that!?" The shorter man griped.

The taller man glanced at him and shrugged before looking at the man behind the desk. The portly man looked between the two and raised an eyebrow.

"Can we save the lovers' spat for anywhere  _not_ in my general vicinity?" He asked.

Both men frowned at this but both had enough sense not to say anything to that comment besides a quiet  _'yessir'._ The portly man nodded and then he stood up, walking around the desk and looked down at the perforated body bag, before he looked up at the two men.

"This is her?" He questioned.

The shorter man nodded, the taller man stayed quiet and the boss grinned a wicked but slightly excited grin.

"Excellent, I trust her capture was unimpeded and uncomplicated?" He inquired.

The shorter man looked at him and then looked at the taller man before he looked back at the boss.

"If by unimpeded and uncomplicated you mean unharmed, then no..her capture wasn't unimpeded and uncomplicated" he answered.

The bos looked at the shorter man and then he looked at the taller man, who for all intents and purposes looked as guilty as a child who had just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He then looked at the body bag.

"Open it!" He ordered.

The shorter man crouched down and unzipped the body bag, pulling the flap across to expose the form of Alexx Lennox. The boss looked at the girl, spotting the malformed arm and the various still healing bullet wounds. He narrowed his eyes and looked up at the men before he grabbed the taller man's shirt, as a result he grabbed the other man's chest hair too. This made the taller man wince and bend over to try to alleviate the pain in his chest.

"What part of  _I want her unharmed_  did you not understand!?" He yelled.

The taller man whimpered a little and grimaced, gritting his teeth.

"I-I'm sorry boss! S-she wouldn't stay down!" He exclaimed.

The boss growled a little and pushed the taller man away and looked towards the shorter man.

"Dylan take her to the medics, see if they can't fix that arm and sort out those wounds" he said.

The shorter man nodded and picked Alexx up carefully leaving the room. The boss glared at the taller man.

"You disappoint me Stuart. I ask you to bring her back unharmed and I learn that you attempted to ventilate her" he said.

Stuart looked down and clasped his hands behind his back. The boss shook his head and went back to sit behind his desk.

"You're on latrine duty for the week" he said.

The tall man bowed his head but didn't say anything. He knew better than to do so. The boss nodded and made a motion for the man to leave. Stuart left the room and headed towards the bathrooms.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobots)**

As soon as the Autobots got back to the base in Diego Garcia, Optimus was drawing up plans to find and retrieve Alexx. If only they knew where she'd gone, unfortunately there was no trace of anything, Ratchet had searched around where the battle had taken place and though there were several soldiers offlined, he hadn't found a single trace of Alexx. A couple of the mechs had wanted to stay behind and try to find the femme, but the four mechs who were mated to her knew it would be a fruitless effort so Optimus had declined their requests as much as it hurt him to do so. With Galloway gone, the team guessed they were free to continue anti-Decepticon operations, though right now they had something more important to focus on.

"And you are sure that she was not among the offlined?" Optimus asked.

Ratchet looked at his leader and friend and shook his helm.

"If she were Optimus, you would have felt it" he replied.

This of course had confused the Autobot leader and Ratchet had then explained that somehow, a spark bond had been formed between the large mech and the human/feline femme. He told of how Jazz said Alexx had collapsed when Megatron had stabbed Optimus through the spark chamber and offlined him and Optimus was shocked to say the least.

"How could this have happened? I used my human holoform" he said.

Ratchet was at a loss for words and all he could say was that he didn't know how it could've happened, only that it had. However, there was a positive point to all this, the fact that Optimus wasn't currently in dire pain suggested that wherever Alexx was, she was alive. Optimus nodded and dismissed his CMO, instead opting to sit in his alt form and work out what had happened. Will had taken to questioning every man who was on the team in Egypt, but so far nothing of any importance was coming up. Anything could've happened to the feline shifter when she went to protect Sam's parents, though Bumblebee had told Jazz that he'd seen an Earth feline attacking Ravage and Jazz had reported this to Optimus who had taken the fact into consideration. All four of the mechs who were Alexx's mates were worried for the femme and Will being Alexx's adopted father was just as worried, if not more, they didn't know where she was or who she was with. The worst part was...how was he supposed to explain to Sarah that Alexx had disappeared...again?

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx)**

She woke with a start, her heart beating rapidly and aches and pains all over her body. Slowly she sat up and looked at her surroundings, it appeared that she was in some sort of building, the walls around her were wet with condensation and looked like they'd started to grow moss and it was cold. She rose to her feet and turned towards the window, climbing up on the little cot that was there and looking out of said window, only to be confronted with miles and miles of scorching bright light and golden sands. So she was in the desert...again. Suddenly, a noise startled her and she hurriedly climbed down from the cot and tried to hide, as the door opened she tried to get a good look out of it but a figure stepped in the way. She shrank back as the form stepped into the room and the door was closed again. A man stood there, he looked ragged and he had dirt all over his face, cuts and scrapes littered his chest too. Slowly, she took in a deep breath through her nose almost reeling back in surprise, before her stood another Shifter...a feline one at that, but though she was eager to go and see him Thera was giving her warning signals so she hung back.

The male Shifter walked towards her and she cowered a little more, he stopped in front of her and gave her a small smile before offering his hand to her.

"It's alright...I'm not gonna hurt you" he said.

Alexx didn't move, she just stared at him before she started doing the only thing she thought would get him away...she hissed at him. The male didn't seem to budge though, he just looked right into her eyes and ignored her hissing. When she shifted into her Panther form, he shifted into the form of a Barbary lion and she hissed at him even more, this time with a growl laced in it too. Finally the male got the hint and he moved off, jumping onto one of the beds and laying down in his feline form. He seemed to be relaxed in here, so relaxed that he closed his eyes and drifted into a light snooze, Alexx took this as her chance and she shifted back into her human form, heading towards the door and trying the handle. It didn't budge. She shook the door a few times and then started to punch at the reinforced glass window at the top.

"You won't escape" the man said.

She hissed and continued to punch at the window, her knuckles now beginning to split and she left blood stains all over the glass. The man sighed and just sat there watching her. He'd learned very early on that escape was nigh impossible as well as nigh improbable, though it seemed that the female wasn't going to listen so he'd let her find it out on her own. He let loose a yawn and leaned back against the wall a smirk on his face as Alexx continued to punch the window, blood now smearing over her fist and smeared over the window. He knew why he was here and he didn't mind though he had an inkling that this woman would be a tough nut to crack. After winning against another feline male, he had won the right to this female and he'd expected it to be as easy as the other females had been but this woman...she presented a challenge and he hated challenges.

"What's your name?" He asked.

The woman didn't say anything, though she had finally given up punching the window at least for now. He knew that she'd be back there tomorrow and the next day and the next day until she'd severely mutated her hand or worse damaged it so much that she lost it. He could already see that there were a number of scars from previous fights on what he could see of her body, just as he had a number of scars from his fights, though he doubted that her fights were for the chance to mate with a strong female or male in her case. A sigh escaped him as she didn't answer his question, instead she opted to sit as far away from him as possible, he smirked. She'd warm up to him in the end, they always did, then he could hopefully give these brutes what they wanted. A child with the  _anomaly_ gene that he and he guessed she had.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Diego Garcia)**

Sergeant Hollier sat outside the base, his back resting against the wall and his knees bent up to his chest. If he was honest, he was regretting what he'd done it was selfish of him and he was angry when he did it. Honestly, he didn't think of the consequences all he was thinking about was revenge and his lust for such a thing clouded his rational mind. He let out a small groan and brought his hands up to his head, rubbing his face. He had two decisions, he could either not tell everyone what had happened and live in regret until they found out that it was him who got her kidnapped and he received a dishonourable discharge or he could tell them now and forego all the guilt and still receive a dishonourable discharge, either way he was screwed and he knew it. He sighed and let his head bang back against the wall, closing his eyes for a brief moment until he heard someone step outside. He opened his eyes and looked around, seeing Private Richard Matheson stood there, great that was all he needed, the man who was a good friend of Alexx's standing there looking all worried while he sat against the wall regretting telling the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad where the Shifter femme was going to be and when the best time to take her would be.

Richard looked over at him and through his worry, he could see that Hollier was upset about something and that made him suspicious. Joshamee Hollier wasn't one who really looked upset over anything, he did what he did because he had to or he felt like it and everyone else be damned. Slowly he walked over to the man and looked down at him.

"What's got the  _fuck you jack_ guy so upset?" He asked.

Hollier looked up at him and sneered a little.

"None of your business fag. Leave me alone" he replied.

Richard frowned at being called a fag and he crossed his arms over his chest.

"There is nothing wrong with being homosexual  _Joshamee_. Don't you dare call me that again" he said.

He then walked off and Hollier rolled his eyes before resting his arms on his knees. A decision had to be made and though neither of them promised a good outcome, he knew it was his own fault. He sighed and once again allowed his head to fall back against the wall. Will didn't scare him, what scared him was the fact that four giant alien robots in the hanger behind him were mates of Alexx and when they learned of his betrayal...they would undoubtedly try to kill him.


	22. Chapter 22

**(Autobots)**

People milled around the base, each of them infinitely aware of the tension in the air, three days had passed since Alexx had disappeared from the desert in Egypt and everyone was suffering in her absence. Ironhide was snapping at human and Autobot alike and it was worse than usual, Ratchet was even grumpier than usual, mix that with the anxiety that had set in with it...he was one to avoid as much as possible, Jazz had taken up his position outside of the base and once again was actively moping. The only mech who  _wasn't_ moping or snapping or grumpy was Optimus. Yes he was worried about his mate, but he was using all the resources available to him to try and find the Shifter femme, in all honesty the lack of any trace was rather frustrating, but everyone knew they  _had_  to try. Even Will was snapping at everyone, especially since he'd told Sarah of their adopted daughter's mysterious disappearance. To say that the blonde haired woman had yelled at him would be an understatement, she had practically _screamed_  at him for essentially losing the girl.

Many of the mechs were beginning to suggest that perhaps the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad was involved in Alexx's disappearance and this had given Optimus much to think about. It would make a lot of sense and it would explain why her absence was so quiet and clean. Due to the circumstances, everyone had agreed to bring Thomas Moore in on the hunt, being a self-proclaimed expert in the topic of Shifters and their behaviour, he would be a valuable asset to them. However, a disturbing piece of news had come up, from Thomas himself...Mrs. Reade was missing too, this was extremely worrying considering Mrs. Reade's status as a Shifter. With all this going on, only  _one_ of the humans was thinking rationally, Richard Matheson. Despite having been called a fag by Sergeant Hollier three days ago, his mind was reeling over how the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad could have possibly known where the Autobots and Alexx were going to be, surely no-one had told them...unless. He walked up to Will.

"Sir" he said.

He stood to attention when Will turned around and he saluted.

"Permission to speak freely sir" he stated.

Will gave a simple nod and Richard nodded too.

"Sir, I have reason to believe that we have a traitor amongst our ranks sir" he said.

Lennox gave him a look and motioned for the Private to follow him. When they were a safe distance away, he stopped and turned to face Richard.

"What's your reasoning?" He questioned.

Richard gave a bit of a sigh and looked around.

"The ASTS have no idea where we're based. If they did, don't you think they would've tried to take Alexx  _before_ Egypt? Now, the only way they could've known that we were going to Egypt, was if someone told them. I know I didn't, I'm sure Epps didn't and I'm pretty sure the Autobots wouldn't have had any contact whatsoever with the ASTS. So that would mean, one of the soldiers has been running his mouth...sir" he replied.

Will looked at him and frowned. Okay, so his reasoning was pretty good and made a lot of sense. The hard part now...was finding the soldier who had talked. He nodded to Richard, who saluted him and walked off. Thinking about it, he had a fair idea of who the traitor  _might_ be and he only hoped, for that soldier's sake...that he was wrong.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx)**

Three days had passed and in those three days, Alexx had all but given up trying to get out of the cell that she was currently sharing with another Shifter. Food and water had been brought in morning, noon and night for them, but she hadn't eaten a thing, nor had she drank anything. It wasn't that she wasn't hungry or thirsty...well she wasn't, but that was beside the point, she didn't trust the people who had put her in here to not put something in the food or the water and she most certainly didn't trust the other Shifter that she was sharing her cell with. Said Shifter was trying to get her to talk and get used to him, but she was having none of it, she wasn't interested in him and she'd made that pretty clear on many occasions.

"Come on, you gotta eat something and at least drink something" he said.

She didn't even raise her head to look at him, not interested in giving him the time of day let alone looking at him. The male Shifter sighed and shook his head.

"How you ever expect to carry without eating or drinking is beyond me" he stated.

This time Alexx  _did_ look up at him, a look of confusion upon her face.

"Carry what?" She asked.

The male looked at her and smirked.

"Ah, she speaks! And in answer to your question...children of course" he replied.

Alexx furrowed her brows again and then she narrowed her eyes.

"Who said  _anything_ about children?" She questioned.

The male glanced in her direction and then just outright laughed. He shook his head and sighed in a joyous manner.

"This is the reason you and I were put in this cell together. To reproduce. They expect me to inseminate you and get you pregnant so that they can reap the benefits of having a soldier whose parents both have the gene anomaly" he explained.

The femme curled her legs tighter towards herself.

"Ain't no way you're getting your dick anywhere  _near_ me mate...let alone  _inseminate_ me" she promised.

This again caused the male to laugh.

"Oh you will sweetheart, you most certainly will. Just a matter of time before you come into heat then you'll be  _begging_ for me to fuck you" he uttered.

Alexx growled.

"I already have mates and I'm not planning on adding you to that list any time soon. Too bad I only fuck my mates" she voiced.

The male laughed again and shook his head. He was right of course, she was due in heat any day now and she would become extremely horny indeed, but she was determined to not allow him to get his hands on her...not willingly anyway and she'd sure as hell put up a fight if he tried forcing himself on her.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(ASTS)**

In the would be warden's office, an elderly woman stood with her hands clasped in front of her and she was rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet. Suddenly the door opened and the portly man who happened to be the boss of the ASTS stepped through.

"Mrs. Reade I presume?" He asked.

The woman nodded and gave a bit of a smile.

"That would be me sweetheart. And I'd be right to assume that you would be Clive Hangon the great, great, great, great grandson of Peter Hangon the original founder of the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad yes?" She questioned.

The man gave a curt nod before sitting down at his desk and interlacing his fingers upon the wooden table.

"Well Mrs. Reade, it's not very often that we get Shifters come to us willingly, so how can I assist you?" He asked.

The elderly woman gave a smile that had a mischevious and devious glint appearing in her eyes.

"I heard that you captured Alexx" she replied.

Clive gave a bit of a smile and another nod, leaning back in his chair.

"You heard correctly" he said.

Mrs. Reade gave a grin that put a dangerous glint in Clive's eyes.

"Good, I'd like to offer my assistance in keeping her captured. If she's anything like her parents, she'll be thinking of ways she can escape" she stated.

Clive raised an eyebrow and leaned forward again.

"What provoked you to turn on your own kind?" He inquired.

Mrs. Reade gave a dramatic sigh.

"Alexx's father should have been my son, not that Dale Pro" she spat.

Her face contorted in disgust as she said the name  _Dale Pro_  and Clive clicked his tongue as he once again leaned back in his chair.

"The fights in the arena are fair fights. Weapons are not allowed unless we're making them fight just for fun. I'm afraid your son wasn't strong enough to beat Dale, therefore Dale killed him. Obviously you had told your son to work as hard as he could and not give up, this is the result" he explained.

Mrs. Reade was about to say something when the door was knocked.

"Come in!" Clive called.

A young man with black hair walked in, he was pretty well built and had a little bit of designer stubble.

"You wanted to see me?" He asked.

Clive grinned and opened his arms.

"Ah...yes. Dylan I'd like you to meet Mrs. Norma Reade, she's a Shifter Elder. Mrs. Reade, allow me to introduce to you, my best worker and right hand man Dylan Gould" he said.

Mrs. Reade just looked at him and inclined her head in a greeting, before she glared at Clive.

"I want her child. Her pathetic father cost me a son, so I want her second child" she demanded.

Clive just glared at her.

"I don't think so. The reason I put Alexx and Raj together is because they both have the anomaly gene in them. They both have the Jekyll and Hyde gene. Any child they produce will be stronger than all the rest and I'm not prepared to give up an opportunity like that" he said.

Mrs. Reade growled again.

"And there's no chance of me getting the first born" she muttered.

Clive chuckled.

"You know as well as I do Mrs. Reade, the first born of any female Shifter is likely to either be a still born or expire within days of being born. Courtesy of an inexperienced mother" he voiced.

The elderly Shifter hissed and turned around ready to head out of the door, but Clive cleared his throat.

"Am I to assume that you'll  _not_ be lending a hand then?" He asked.

Mrs. Reade turned her head towards him as much as she could.

"Oh I'll help you, if only to keep that little bitch here until she's done her duty" she replied.

She then walked out of the office, leaving Clive sat there grinning from ear to ear.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobot base)**

Will walked outside and sighed, all the soldiers that were on base had been lined up for a polygraph test. Sideswipe was there to cnduct the test as he was the one who was less likely to be biased in a situation like this. The Major stepped up to the first man and nodded to Sideswipe, who nodded back and then Will turned to the man.

"State your name and rank Soldier" he said.

The man stood to attention and saluted.

"Sir, Private James Herriott sir" he stated.

Will nodded and made sure that Sideswipe was ready before turning back to the man.

"Did you or did you not inform the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad of our location when Optimus Prime was KIA?" He asked.

The soldier remained passive and straight as a board.

"Sir no sir I did not" he replied.

Will looked to Sideswipe.

"Well?" He questioned.

Sideswipe shook his helm.

"Truth" he replied.

Will nodded and then turned to the man again.

"You're dismissed Private" he said.

He then moved onto the next soldier.

"Name and rank" he stated.

This soldier did exactly what the previous one had done. Stood to attention and saluted.

"Sir Private Steven Gibbs sir" he voiced.

As before, Will looked to Sides to see if he had the information and was ready and with a nod from the silver mech Lennox went on with the question.

"Did you or did you not leak information of our whereabouts when Optimus Prime was KIA?" He asked.

The soldier remained passive and straight as a board also.

"Sir no sir, I did not" he replied.

Will looked to Sides who shook his head again.

"Truth" he stated.

The Major nodded and dismissed the soldier. This went on until the only two soldiers left were Private Richard Matheson and Sergeant Joshamee Hollier.

"Name and rank soldier" Will said.

The soldier swallowed, sweat already beading on his forehead and sliding down his face and neck.

"Sir, Sergeant Joshamee Hollier sir" he uttered.

Will raised an eyebrow.

"You're looking a bit sweaty there soldier. Are you feeling alright?" He asked.

Hollier swallowed again and nodded.

"Fine sir, just hot is all" he replied.

Will nodded and then stood with his hands behind his back.

"Did you or did you not leak sensitive information as to the whereabouts of Alexx Lennox when Optimus Prime was KIA?" He questioned.

Once again Hollier swallowed and he shook his head.

"Sir no sir, I did not" he answered.

Will looked at Sideswipe who seemed to frown for a minute before he looked at the human.

"His spark beats have just increased and the stress level in his vocals suggest that he is lying" he stated.

Will looked back to Hollier and narrowed his eyes.

"Private Matheson, you are dismissed" he said.

Richard stood to attention and saluted before he marched off, a small smirk upon his lips. Will glared at Hollier for a minute.

"I will ask one more time soldier, did you or did you not leak sensitive information as to the qhereabouts of Alexx Lennox during the time that Optimus Prime was KIA?" He asked.

Hollier didn't look Will in the eye, but he knew that he'd been caught out and there was no point in denying it anymore.

"Yes sir" he whispered.

Will narrowed his eyes.

"Again soldier!" He yelled.

Hollier cleared his throat.

"Yes sir!" He stated loudly.

Immediately the sound of cannons powering up was heard and Ironhide was moving forwards rapidly.

"You pathetic waste of fleshy space. Where is she!" He yelled.

Both Ratchet and Optimus had to hold him back, though when Optimus looked down at the male, his optics didn't hold the kindness they usually had, instead they held the desire to allow Ironhide free reign on the traitor.

"You will divulge to us the location of Alexx Lennox and you shall do so posthaste" he stated.

His voice was calm, but if one were to really look at him, they would see that he was almost visibly vibrating with anger. Hollier took a shaky breath and told them of Alexx's location within the prison in the desert, before Will removed the straps from his shoulders and glared at him.

"From this point on, you shall be court marshalled and will await a hearing to decide whether you are dishonourably discharged or not" he said.

Hollier nodded and accepted his fate, walking away when Will dismissed him. Now they had to put together a team to raid this prison. Though from what Hollier had said, the ASTS already had an army of Shifters waiting to be sent out for duty.


	23. Chapter 23

**(Alexx)**

A few hours had passed and Alexx was fighting to stay awake as well as battling disorientating hallucinations, her dehydrated and starved body functioning so sluggishly that even her usually sharp senses were dull. Every so often she would smack her lips together and swallow thickly and her stomach would growl loudly signalling just how hungry and thirsty she really was, but no matter how much her stomach hurt, how nauseous she felt or how incredibly dry her mouth and throat were, she didn't move a muscle. Because of her acutely dehydrated state, she'd only been to the bathroom once since she arrived here, whereas the male she was sharing with had been around thirty times or more in the last three days. The male had also been trying to get her to eat something by waving pieces of food under her nose, but every time he did that she would simply curl up tighter and ignore him and now he was beginning to get angry with her stubborn refusal to eat or drink.

Currently, said male was sat on his cot glaring at Alexx with his one good eye, the other being half closed, swollen and bruised after an attempt to force feed the female ended with him being punched. In addition to the shiner, he also had bite marks and scratches all over his arms and hands. Thankfully the medic of the ASTS hadn't said anything about it, she'd just patched him up and sent him back to the room, but he was surprised that they weren't taking more care of the femme, considering how  _precious_ she was supposed to be. Obviously she wasn't  _that_ important, if she were he would've guessed they'd be doing something about her lack of eating and drinking, so maybe he was wrong. As yet another growl erupted from the female's stomach, the male gave a frustrated growl and at the same time, his eyes softened in sympathy. Getting up off of his cot, he walked over to where the jug of water was and he picked up a goblet before filling it half-way with the water. He then walked over to the corner that the female was currently occupying and held it out to her.

"You need to drink something at least" he said.

Alexx however simply curled herself into a tighter ball in her own way of refusal and buried her head. The male growled and thrust the goblet towards her, spilling some of the water in the process, but again the femme ignored him and this caused him to growl and reach down to grab her throat. He hauled her up and pressed her against the wall with his entire body and attempted to force her mouth open, only for her to clamp her jaw shut on his fingers. This caused him to hiss and he pulled back, dragging his fingers from her teeth as he did. He growled and threw the goblet at her.

"Fine! You can die for all I care" he yelled.

The femme just sank to the floor and curled up again, pulling her knees as close to her chest as was possible and wrapping her arms around them before putting her chin on top of them.

"I'd rather die than have a child with you for them" she whispered.

The male growled and shook his head before going to sit back on his cot where he mirrored her posture on the bed and just looked at her as she buried her head under her arms. A small smirk found its way onto his lips and he just stared at her.

"You do know that they're gonna keep us in here together until we actually have a child right?" He asked.

Alexx didn't even spare him a glance, she just kept her head down and her arms folded atop her knees. When she did speak, her voice was slightly muffled due to her position.

"Well they'll be waiting a long time" she replied.

The Shifter male just rolled his eyes and leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes and sighing. It would soon be time for one of the members of the ASTS to come into the room and deliver some food and water and when they did, he would make sure that the boss knew of the female's lack of food and water intake and hopefully they will do something about it. Without the food and water she'd not come into heat and therefore there was less chance of her getting pregnant and he was sure that they'd not like that. So when the woman came in, he opened one eye and looked at her.

"I wanna speak to ya boss" he said.

The woman just glared at him and left without another word. The male smirked again and once again leaned his back against the wall again. Until the woman came back and opened the door.

"The boss'll see you" she stated.

He got up and walked out of the room with her and she closed the door. As soon as he was out, she put rope on his hands and shackles around his feet, before she took him to where Clive's office was. Back in the room, Alexx was still curled up in the corner with her head buried under her arms, that is until she heard a loud explosion. Thinking that she was hallucinating the noise, the femme raised her head slowly only to quickly bury it again when a large hole was blown in the wall. As soon as the dust settled, she raised her head again the dust in her hair falling out and she coughed a little as she slowly brought herself to her feet.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobots)**

After receiving the location as to where Alexx was, Optimus, Will and the other soldiers were drawing up plans, the mission was simple... _Find and rescue Alexx and if we happen to rescue a few other Shifters too, well that's a bonus._ However, finding Alexx was the easy part, the hard part was finding out just how big this place was and what security protocols they had in place and with Hillock in the brig, it was up to everyone else.

"So, anyone know what security systems this prison has or where exactly it is?" Will asked.

The soldiers muttered amongst themselves, each trying to recall whether they'd been to the place or not. That is until a holographic three dimensional image of the prison appeared in front of them. Will looked up and saw that Ratchet was the one who was projecting the image. The medimech also told them the coordinates of the establishment.

"Okay so...whoa this is gonna be hard" he said.

Then one of the soldiers stepped up and seemed to scrutinise the image before his eyes opened wide.

"Whoa, they have some very sophisticated and state of the art security there. Looks like...yeah, it's all supplied by IIDSC ***** , the Intricate Intruder Detection Systems Company. Can you zoom in Ratchet?" He asked.

Ratchet did as the soldier asked and said soldier stepped up closer, the other soldiers moving out of the way to let him through. He kept looking at the image as the medimech zoomed in closely.

"Looks like they got the full whammy too. Electric fence, intricate motion detectors not to mention a specially built guard house with the automatically activated barrier too. Though I'm not sure if it's a key card or ID card that activates it" he explained.

Will looked at him and so did the other soldiers, the man looked around and raised an eyebrow.

"What?" He asked.

The soldiers shook their heads and looked away, muttering to themselves while Will continued to look at the soldier.

"How do you know this?" He questioned.

The soldier gave a bit of a nervous smile and began to scratch the back of his neck in a cartoon-like way.

"Uh...my dad had a...uh...shady past sir. When I was younger he used to take me out with him when he raided warehouses that had the IDS from the IIDS installed. So...uh...I know how to get past them" he replied.

Will raised an eyebrow and was about to berate the soldier for not disclosing this before, but then he stopped himself because this man was what they needed right now and if he could get Alexx out of the place then his past and his father's past didn't matter.

"Do you think you could get past the guard house?" He asked.

The soldier nodded and then put his hand on his chin with his index finger belt across his lips.

"I could, but I'd need to get in there and see exactly what type of system is in there" he answered.

Will nodded and then looked up to the mechs, but specifically looked at Optimus.

"Are you alright with this?" He inquired.

Optimus looked down at the human and then he knelt down and looked at the soldier with the father who had the shady past.

"You are certain that these security systems can be bypassed without the residents knowing?" He questioned.

The soldier nodded and gave a bit of a smile.

"Every security system has a fault, it may take a while to find, but they all have faults. Even something the company finds to be extremely minor can be the system's major downfall" he replied.

The large mech nodded and then looked back at Will.

"Our mission is to find and rescue Alexx, by any means necessary. I will make no compromises when the life of my mate is in jeopardy" he said.

Will nodded and then looked to the soldier.

"What is your name solider?" He asked.

The soldier stood up straight and saluted.

"Private Hilary Jenkins sir" he replied.

Will nodded and walked around to the man as Ratchet deactivated the three dimensional image and put his hand on Private Jenkins' shoulder.

"If you can get Alexx out of that death trap, you'll get a promotion" he said.

Private Jenkins gave a bit of a smile and nodded, before heading off to do some research and maybe even call his father to see if he could help. As he went, Will looked up at the mechs and then he heard a whine behind him and he turned to see Stanley stood there looking sad.

"We'll take the dog with us" he stated.

Ironhide made a slightly disgusted noise and glared down at the human who was his charge.

"Why are we taking the canine?" He asked.

Lennox looked up at the black mech.

"Because he can find Alexx by scent. If she somehow managed to escape like her parents did, Stanley will be able to find her" he answered.

Ironhide grunted and turned away but didn't say anything else.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(ASTS)**

As soon as the male Shifter got into Clive's office, he immediately started talking.

"The female you put me in with" he began.

Clive looked up at him over his glasses and nodded.

"Yes?" He asked.

The male Shifter sighed.

"She's not eating, she's not drinking, she's getting weak and your people aren't taking any notice of it, they're just in and out. You want us to have kids, you better start taking care of her 'cause she won't come into heat if she's starving and dehydrated" he finished.

Clive looked at him and raised an eyebrow, before he took his glasses off and held them in front of him on the desk.

"Well I'll-" he began.

He was cut off when a loud bang resounded throughout the prison. Immediately the others were looking around and then they looked back at Clive.

"What do we do?" One asked.

However, it was Dylan that looked at Clive and then walked out of the room immediately, heading towards where the noise had come from. He opened a few of the cells to find that the occupants had disappeared through large holes in the wall and then he opened the cell that had Alexx in it and blanched when he saw that the female was no longer there.

"The boss is gonna go ape" he muttered.

He closed the door and took a breath before heading back in the direction of the warden's office. As soon as he got in there, he told Clive of what had happened and as predicted the portly man flew off the handle and started yelling insults and orders and then he had the male Shifter taken to another cell.

"Find me those freaks! And especially find me that abomination! I don't care how you do it, just bring her to me  _unharmed_ " he yelled.

The men and women who worked for the ASTS scrambled to get the dogs and hunt for the Shifters that had escaped. While Clive just sat at his desk and screamed loudly.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx)**

She ran across the desert, or rather she stumbled and zigzagged across the desert, her dehydrated state and her hallucinations making her even more disorientated than she already was. She stopped a few times and looked around, but all she could see was sand, sand and even more sand, she didn't know which direction she was going in or when she'd find any kind of civilisation, if there was any kind out here. Instead, she glanced up at the burning sun and smacked her lips a few times, swallowing dryly, if she thought that being in that prison-like place was bad, this was even worse.

_As much as I hate to say it...I should've stay-oh god it's hot out here._

She couldn't even sting a thought together properly, shaking her head she started off in the direction she was going before, weaving from side to side, her arms and legs almost like jelly and her form slumped. A couple of times she fell down, but the desire to get away from the ASTS outweighed the desire to rest and sheer willpower caused her to keep going. Time went by slowly as she walked and the heat was scorching, giving how little she was wearing anyway she didn't have much protection against the Ultra Violet rays that were rushing down and sinking into her skin. As much as she couldn't feel it right now, she knew that if she got somewhere safe  _before_ she collapsed of heat exhaustion or dehydration or hyperthermia, she would feel it the next day.

A few more hours passed and once again she stopped and she turned around to face the direction she'd just come, a wave of relief washed through her as she saw that the prison was no longer is sight and all she saw was a sand dune.

_When did I climb tha-oh well, no more._

She continued on a few more paces before she fell to her knees again and this time, instead of getting up she fell onto her side. Her lips were dry and cracked from the heat and her skin was beginning to go red, but she didn't move. Instead her eyes slowly closed, she didn't even move when she heard the barking of a dog getting closer to her.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobots)**

After an hour on a plane, the Autobots and the humans were now driving down a dusty road towards the coordinates that Ratchet had given when he'd brought up the three dimensional image of the prison. Ironhide was leading with Will in the front seat, followed by Ratchet who also had a few humans inside him, then Jazz who had a few soldiers inside him and these were followed by Optimus, Sideswipe, Mudflap, Skids and Jolt, all with soldiers inside of their alt forms. Slowly, Ironhide came to a stop and Will got out of him with his mouth wide open when he saw the state the building was in. The other soldiers got out of the other mechs and Epps walked up to Will, standing next to him.

"Whoa...someone delivered some major ass-whuppin' to that place" he stated.

Will nodded and then looked around, using his hands as a protection against the dying sun. Private Jenkins exited Jazz's alt form and hurried up to the two soldiers up front and he frowned at the sight.

"What the..." he started.

He then looked down to the front of the gates to see several men laying on the floor, one of them moving.

"Sir" he said.

Will looked at him and then looked to where he was pointing and held up his gun.

"We got live ones!" He yelled.

The soldiers all hurried over to the man who was moving and saw that he'd not been shot by a gun, more like a high voltage, but non-fatal weapon. Jenkins looked around and continued to frown.

"This was a professional job and they had some serious firepower" he stated.

Will nodded and then looked over at Ratchet's alt form as Stanley jumped out and started barking. He started to run away from where the mechs had stopped and Epps raised an eyebrow.

"What's up with him?" He asked.

Lennox shrugged.

"I dunno" he replied.

When they saw Stanley go out of sight, Will got up and got into Ironhide.

"Follow that dog" he said.

Ironhide did a U-Turn and started in the direction Stanley had gone, adding more power as he drove up the sand dune and just about getting to the top when Will gasped. The black mech stopped when he got to onto the flat and Will got out.

"Call Ratchet...now!" He yelled.

Ironhide transformed and waved to the other mechs, Ratchet transformed and Ironhide sent him a message over the comms, telling him that they'd found Alexx. Immediately the medimech had transformed and was speeding towards the direction Ironhide was in and when he finally reached the location, he transformed and hurried over to where Will was cradling Alexx's still form. Ratchet scanned the femme and almost cycled his intakes in relief.

"She is online...but barely" he said.

He then transformed and activated his holoform before walking over to Will, who had now stood up. The medimech took the Shifter femme off of the human and proceeded to take her into the back of his alt form where he began to hook lines up to her.

"She is severely dehydrated and is hyperthermic" he stated.

Will frowned.

"How could she be hypothermic? She's been in the heat" he said.

Ratchet rolled his optics and didn't bother to look at the human as he explained.

"Hyp-othermia is different to hyp-erthermia. Hypothermia is where the body's core temperature drops below the required level to maintain a normal metabolic rate, such as when the body has been submerged in frozen H2O. Hyperthermia is where the body's core temperature rises  _above_  the required level to maintain a normal metabolic rate" he explained.

Will shrugged, not really knowing what that meant.

"So?" He asked.

Ratchet cycled his intakes in frustration.

"If not treated, Hyperthermia can cause neural disability or offlining. I have inserted an intravenous needle to introduce saline into her system which should help to reduce the hyperthermia. However I will need to get her back to base as soon as possible so that I may put her in a bathing tub with frozen H2O. These measures  _should_  help prevent neural disability and the measures I am taking now will help to prevent her offlining" he replied.

This time Will raised an eyebrow.

"Wait, wait, wait... _should_  help prevent mental disability?" He questioned.

Ratchet looked at him.

"I will not know the effects of her exposure to the Ultra Violet rays of your solar celestial body until she awakens" he answered.

Lennox frowned again and then sighed.

"Right, lets get going. Save her Ratchet" he said.

Ratchet nodded and as Will closed the back doors of his alt form, the medic drove off at speed towards the airport, the others following behind as close as they could, considering the speed Ratchet was going and considering the alt form Ratchet had was made for all terrains.


	24. Chapter 24

**(A Few Days Later)**

Ratchet had kept Alexx under heavy sedation since they'd found her hyperthermic form in the desert a days ago, he was intent on making sure that she was properly hydrated before he allowed her to wake up. So far, her rehydration was coming along nicely, the medimech had been keepinoptic on the colour of her waste fluids, when he'd started the rehydration process her urine had been an amber almost brown colour and now as he monitored her, it was a dark yellow but bordering on a transparent yellow colour. He'd just finished checking on her when Will came in.

"How is she?" He asked.

Ratchet looked down at the human and cycled his intakes. He couldn't blame the human male for being worried about the Shifter femme he had adopted her after all, but so far he'd been in here three times today and asked the exact same question each time he'd entered the room.

"She is fine William. Her rehydration is coming along perfectly, I will be able to reverse the sedation in a few Earth hours" he replied.

Will gave a bit of a smile and nodded before looking at the unconscious Shifter femme, before he frowned.

"She's got quite the sunburn" he

The medimech looked her over and nodded before he himself frowned.

"Indeed, I will need to assess how bad the burns upon her dermal layers are when she is conscious" he stated.

Will nodded and then sighed before going to sit on a chair next to the bed. He'd told Sarah that they'd found Alexx, but he'd told her not to worry and that she was in good hands, but that hadn't stopped her from worrying. However, she'd not wanted to come and see her due to having to look after Annabelle. Lennox sighed and reached out to touch his adoptive daughter, but stopped she was bound to be in a mountain of pain with that sunburn and he pulled his hand back.

"My mother always told me that when I got sunburn, I was to get into the shower and have the water as hot as I could take it" he muttered.

Ratchet looked at him and he looked at Ratchet and upon seeing the strange look the medimech was giving him, he shrugged.

"The hot water takes the sting out of the sunburn" he uttered.

The medimech raised an optic ridge before his optics dimmed almost as if he were looking it up. When his optics came back their usual brightness, he glanced at the human before going back to cleaning his tools.

"There is nothing on your World Wide Web that gives me enough proof that this works William. I am not willing to place Alexx under hot water on a suggestion that your femme creator gave to you" he said.

Will looked back down at Alexx and shrugged once again.

"I'm not saying you should Ratch, all I'm saying is that it worked for me" he said.

He then got up and carefully leaned down to press a tender kiss upon his adopted daughter's head.

"I have a meeting with the new director, she's gonna want an update on Alexx's condition" he stated.

Ratchet huffed, during the few days that Alexx had been under sedation a new director had been assigned to the base, a woman by the name of Charlotte Mearing. She was a tough human femme and oozed authority, very much unlike Galloway had and she understood that Alexx had been with them since before they moved to Diego Garcia. However, Ratchet was sure she didn't know of Alexx's Shifter status.

"Then you may tell her to ask  _me_ for an update on Alexx's condition. We are not monsters and we can speak rather good English" he said.

Will gave a bit of a smirk and nodded, leaving the med bay. Since finding Alexx the medic had practically been working non-stop on the Shifter, trying to make sure that she was fully rehydrated and because of this everyone understood that he was going to be a little grumpy. Ratchet cycled his intakes when Will had gone and he slumped a little, he hadn't recharged in three days and as many times as he used the appropriate override codes, he knew he couldn't put it off forever. He decided that a nap wouldn't hurt, Alexx was stable and her artificial bladder wouldn't need changing for a few hours yet, so he transformed and parked himself over in one of the corners of the med bay.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(ASTS)**

"Where is she!" Clive yelled.

The tallest of the two men in front of the desk cowered a little at Clive's voice, the smaller man just stood there.

"We've looked everywhere sir, there's no sign of her within a hundred mile radius of this prison" Dylan said.

Clive looked at him and his face began to turn a beet red.

"Dylan, you're my best man here...do not make me rethink my decision" he warned.

The dark haired man gave a bit of a smirk and stepped forward.

"If I may have a word sir, in private?" He asked.

Clive raised an eyebrow and made a 'shoo' motion to the taller man, hurriedly left the room. The stout man calmed down a little and gave Dylan a bored look.

"What is it?" He barked.

Dylan smirked again and silently asked if he could take a seat. Clive motioned for him to do so and that's what Dylan did.

"I have reason to believe that Alexx is with a group of alien robots known as the  _Autobots_. If this is true sir, there is only one way we can get her back" he began.

Once again Clive raised an eyebrow and made a motion with his hand for Dylan to carry on.

"And that is?" He asked.

Dylan's lips twitched a little as he spoke.

"Join the Decepticon cause. With the Decepticons protecting us, we can get Alexx away from the Autobots and use her for what she's worth" he replied.

Clive looked at him and slowly a smirk appeared on his face. That smirk turned into a triumphant smile as he waved his finger at Dylan.

"You Dylan Gould are a genius!" He hissed.

Dylan shrugged a little in a modest fashion.

"No sir, it was just an idea from an... _acquaintance_  of sorts" he voiced.

The portly man grinned and stood from his desk.

"And you can guarantee that we will get Alexx back?" He questioned.

Dylan shrugged.

"Almost ninety percent sure sir" he answered.

Clive chuckled.

"Ninety percent is good enough for me. Do it" he ordered.

Dylan nodded and stood to leave, bowing his head respectfully as he did. This was going to be brilliant, since his assistant Carly Spencer had started dating that Witwicky kid, not only could said kid get them into the Autobot base, but he could give them information about the Autobots for the grand plan. Whatever that was.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobots)**

A few hours had passed and finally after Ratchet had given Alexx the reversal drug, the Shifter femme was beginning to wake up. Will had brought in some food for her once Ratchet jahad texted him and at first, the medic had told him that the amount on the plate was too much at one time for her. So Will had taken to eating some of it himself, much to the chargin of Ratchet.

"This is a med bay Lieutenant Colonel Lennox, not a mess hall" he said.

Will simply shrugged and continued to eat until there was enough on the plate for Alexx. After around half an hour, she started to stir and Will shot to his feet, almost choking on what he had in his mouth as he did.

"Do go careful William, I do not wish to have to use my forceps to retrieve any foreign object stuck in your trachea" Ratchet groused.

Finally swallowing the food he was chewing, he walked up to the bed in time to see Alexx open her eyes. He gave a smile which she attempted to return only to hiss in pain.

"I'd advise that you don't try to smile too much and do not open your mouth too wide either. You acquired a rather serious burn to your dermal layers while you were laying in the Ultra Violet rays of your sun" Ratchet said.

Alexx turned her head towards the mech and gave a bit of a nod.

"How long was I out?" She asked.

Will smiled and helped her to sit up before he started cutting up some meat for her, before spearing it with the fork and holding it up to her lips.

"Three days. Ratchet says that you were severely dehydrated and hyperthermic" he replied.

Alexx opened her mouth a little and Will popped the small chunk of meat in before pulling the fork out.

"Three days? Damn, what happened?" She questioned.

This time Ratchet piped up.

"We were hoping you could tell us. The last we saw of you was during the battle in Egypt when you ran to aid Samuel's parental units" he replied.

The Shifter femme looked at him and then began to explain what she remembered. Ratchet absorbed it all like a sponge and couldn't help but feel angry that those vile humans tried to force Alexx and some other male to conceive.

"Frankly my dear, I'm surprised Thera didn't come out. No-one would've blamed you if she had" he stated.

Alexx looked at him and sighed.

"Ratchet, that's what they  _wanted_ to happen. They must've had some strange thought that if Thera and that other guy's Shifter met, they'd instantly become mates" she voiced.

The medic barked a small laugh.

"Obviously they don't know what we know" he said.

Alexx shrugged and hissed at doing so.

"How long was I out in the sun?" She asked.

Both Will and Ratchet shrugged and Alexx sighed again.

"Well, I for one am glad to be out of that hell hole" she stated.

Will and the medic agreed with her on that and Will continued to feed her small chunks of food.


	25. Chapter 25

A few days had passed since Will had fed Alexx in the med bay and now thanks to the extra nutrition she was receiving, she'd started healing quite nicely. The severe sunburn she'd acquired while laying out in the desert sun was now nothing more than a slightly darker than usual tan that spread over almost every inch of the front of her body and she was practically back to her usual self. Ratchet had since given her permission to leave the med bay on the condition that she was to stop by once a week for regular checkups, a condition to which she'd readily agreed. However, one downside to consuming food that had a high nutritional value was that she came into heat late. Due to the malnutritioned and dehydrated state she'd been found in, she hadn't come into heat when she was supposed to and now because Ratchet insisted on her consuming foods with a high nutrition content, her heat had come with a vengeance.

Naturally the first mech she'd run into, which happened to be Optimus, had been practically jumped and she'd all but demanded that he have intercourse with her. At first though, the large mech was hesitant to engage in those kinds of activities with her given the fact that she'd literally only  _just_ been allowed out of the med bay, but once the Autobot medic had cleared her for such activities the Autobot leader had happily given his mate the relief he knew she desperately needed. Next on the list had been Ratchet himself and he'd taken his sweet time with her in hopes that a delayed gratification would satisfy her carnal urge to mate for just long enough that she could take a breather. It had worked to an  _extent_ , an hour later she was raring to go again and this time she had her sights set on one mech, one mech who she  _hadn't_ mated with yet...Ironhide.

Said mech was currently sat outside on guard duty, he was absolutely fine and completely oblivious to his mate's predicament, that is until the aforementioned femme appeared beside him. Her scent washed over him like a tidal wave washes over a cliff face and he instantly had his holoform active and had her in his arms peppering kisses on her neck and along her shoulders.

"Frag femme, what's got you so worked up?" He asked.

All he got from her was a moan and her head moved to the side to grant him better access to her neck, a move which earned an appreciative grunt from him. Before he knew what was happening, he was pinned to his own alt form and the femme's hands were roaming over his chest, back and shoulders until she found the hem of his holographic T-shirt and started hefting it up over his washboard abs. Though he was certainly surprised by her ferocity, he knew that they couldn't do this here considering the fact that he was still on guard duty until Jazz came and relieved him in half an hour. As much as it pained him, he pushed her away.

"Alexx, I'm on guard duty you know we can't do this right now" he said.

The femme whined and clawed at his shirt.

"I  _need_ you Ironhide" she whimpered.

The raw need in her eyes and the almost begging tone of her voice almost broke him and probably would've done if he'd been a lesser mech, but he stood firm and took her arms in his hands looking into her beautiful hazel eyes.

"I promise that when my shift is over, I'll come find you" he promised.

Alexx whined and nodded before dropping her head and walking off. The ache between her legs now having multiplied, so she did the only thing she could think of doing...she went to her room and pulled out a little toy that sometimes helped her relieve pent up sexual frustration.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Unknown/Dylan Gould)**

Dylan walked into an abandoned warehouse and looked around. This was the place he'd said that he'd meet his Decepticon contact and frankly he was a little pissed off, all the times he'd met here with said contact, the Decepticon had been here before him now, he was the one who was here first and if there was anything that Dylan didn't like to do, it was wait. Sure he could wait days, weeks even months if he had too, but when it wasn't necessary he got irate rather quick. Suddenly there was the sound of an engine and he looked around just in time to see a large alien looking tank drop through the ceiling. Ducking, the human covered his head with his arm and waited until the dust settled before peeking up.

"You couldn't have used the entrance?" He asked.

The tank transformed and one Megatron looked down at the human snarling.

"Watch your vocals with me fleshling. What news?" He questioned.

Dylan smirked and turned towards the mech with his hands in his suit pockets.

"My boss agreed to join forces with you. For your plan to bring Cybertron back from the dead you're gonna need some  _special_ humans who're stronger than usual humans, faster than usual humans, reproduce faster than usual humans and have ten times the stamina of a usual human. My boss can provide that" he replied

Megatron looked down at the human and an evil smile appeared upon his features.

"Excellent, the plan is coming along nicely. However, those Autobrats still need to retrieve Sentinel Prime" he said.

Dylan gave a bit of a shrug.

"I did what I could, I can't sort that out. However, there is something that the boss wants from you" he stated.

Megatron growled, but cast his crimson optics down to the human anyway.

"Decepticons do not make deals with pathetic fleshbags" he huffed.

The human held up his hands and gave a smirk, obviously not afraid of the Decepticon leader.

"Well, in order for us to breed an army for you that can do ten times  _more_ than the special humans we're giving you, we will need this female" he said.

He then held up a picture of Alexx and to humour himself really, Megatron looked at it.

"Your fleshling boss cannot retrieve this femme himself?" He asked.

Dylan shook his head.

"Not when said...uh... _femme_ is currently playing house with the Autobots" he answered.

Megatron's look turned evil and he gave a bit of a dark chuckle.

"This femme is the key to the Decepticons having an army that can rebuild Cybertron?" He questioned.

Dylan nodded and Megatron snarled a little.

"Once the space bridge is opened by Sentinel, I will send my Decepticons to retrieve this femme of yours" he said.

Then without another word, the Decepticon transformed and ploughed through one of the walls to the warehouse, leaving Dylan standing there with a massive smirk upon his features.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobot Base)**

Half an hour had passed and now Ironhide had been relieved from his guard duty, he was headed towards the place Alexx's scent was coming from. Once there, he activated his human holoform and pushed the door to her quarters open, to find her laying on top of her bed, a pink and phallic looking device in her hand and her eyes closed. Immediately he scanned her and smiled a little when he found that she was asleep, obviously she'd given herself one too many overloads and had fallen into stasis. Carefully, the mech removed the device from her hand, almost groaning when the scent of her wafted into his olfactory sensors and he put it on the bedside table, before lifting her up and pulling back the sheets. However, as he did that, he noticed a medium sized patch of blood on the top sheet, this worried him and he sent a message to Ratchet.

**_:Ironhide to Ratchet:_ **

**_:What is it Ironhide?:_ **

**_:I have just found Alexx in stasis in her appears to be leaking energon from her genital area:_ **

**_:She is in heat Ironhide, menstrual blood is normal. However she may find it embarrassing when she awakens so I would suggest putting the sheet and duvet in the laundry basket:_ **

**_:Right. Ironhide out:_ **

He placed Alexx under the sheets and did as Ratchet suggested and removed the first sheet, heading into the adjoining bathroom and dumping it in the laundry basket before returning with a dark coloured towel fabric and slipping it under his mate. With that done, he pulled the remaining sheets up over her form and pressed a kiss to her forehead before deactivating his holoform. He would stand guard outside her room, knowing the state she was in when she woke up she would probably need relief from her carnal urges again and he would happily provide said relief. He waited nearly three hours and when he sensed the first signs of his mate stirring, he was immediately ready to activate his holoform and give her what she needed. However, he noticed that when she got up she headed straight towards the bathroom and that's where he cut his sensors off, he was sure she didn't want him watching her using the human waste extraction units.

When she reemerged from the bathroom, he saw her take that phallic device in her hand and was confused when he watched her put it into a drawer. Was she not in need anymore? His question was answered when he saw her lay on her bed and slip her hand between her legs and he heard her moan. Activating his holoform, he made it appear inside her quarters and knelt down next to the bed his own hand moving to replace her own. Obviously having felt the small electrical disturbance in the air surrounding her, Alexx didn't start all she did was move her hand so he could have better access.

"You were about to do this on your own femme" he said.

Alexx moaned at his voice and she sat up a little to take her shirt off before laying back down, her hands came up to play with her breasts and Ironhide growled.

"Mine" he voiced.

The Shifter femme removed her hands from her breasts and lay them next to her sides, but he saw them twitching obviously she felt that they were redundant. So, zapping his clothing off, he raised himself up onto his knees and took one of her hands in his own, moving it down to his human phallus that was beginning to stiffen. Taking her cue, Alexx wrapped her hand around his semi-hard shaft and began to pump in time with his fingers rubbing on her clit, until she opened her eyes.

"Let me taste you?" She asked.

The sound of the question had him groaning and he nodded, removing his fingers from her folds and climbing up onto the bed. Alexx shifted herself around and took his penis into her hand again, pumping it a few more times before she pushed on his chest to make him lay down. Ironhide did as he was quietly instructed to do and lay back with his hands keeping him propped up so he could see. She pressed her lips to his and then moved them to his jawline before kissing down his neck and to the scar than ran from his left shoulder to his right pectoral. Slowly she kissed, licked and nipped down that scar, causing the mech to groan and his penis to twitch in her hand.

"Keep doin' that an' yer'll never taste me" he warned.

Something snapped inside of her and she gave a bit of a growl, before she kissed down his body and took his shaft into her mouth bobbing her head hard and fast on him. Before long he could feel himself coming close to overload and he pulled her head up to look into her eyes.

"Let me make love to you" he requested.

Alexx nodded and lay back on her bed, Ironhide situated himself over her and then slowly pushed into her heat. He groaned at the feeling and once he was balls deep into her, he stopped and waited for her to become accustomed to his size. When she moved her hips he pulled almost all of the way out and thrust back into her causing her to moan, he repeated the action time and time again until she was writhing beneath him, that's when he started to speed up. While he was making love to her, he was peppering kisses all down her body as far as he could reach before having to come back up, he wanted to make this very special for her considering it was  _their_ first mating. All too soon the fun was over and as her inner walls squeezed him, he let out a glutteral groan and spilled himself inside of her. Slowly his thrusts came to a stop and he held himself over her long enough for him to pull his manhood out of her opening before he rolled to the side.

"Wow" she said.

Ironhide chuckled and when she looked up at him, she saw the smug look on his face. She smirked and curled into him, knowing that she'd be raring to go again soon.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(ASTS)**

Dylan arrived back at the prison and instantly made his way up to the warden's office where he knocked on the door and waited. As soon as Clive gave him permission to enter, he opened the door and noticed that Mrs. Reade was sat there, raising his eyebrows the dark haired skinny man looked at his boss, who told the female Shifter to leave. Once she had, Dylan closed the door and came to sit in front of his boss.

"Well?" Clive asked.

Dylan smirked.

"My contact agreed to help us find Alexx, as soon as the space bridge is open and their home planet is in our atmosphere" he replied

Clive grinned like a little boy who had just been given his first toy gun at Christmas.

"Brilliant, oh you are a genius Dylan Gould" he said

Dylan nodded and then leaned back.

"I had to bargain for that though" he lied

The portly man raised an eyebrow.

"What did you offer?" He questioned.

The dark haired man smirked.

"An army of Shifters who can help rebuild their home planet and keep the humans in line" he answered.

Clive raised an eyebrow before he smiled and nodded.

"A fair price. Once we have Alexx we won't need those other Shifters anyway" he stated

Dylan chuckled.

"And what of Mrs. Reade?" He asked.

Clive waved his hand and snorted.

"She can join the Shifters we give to your friends" he replied.

Both men were unaware that Mrs. Reade was actually outside the door and listening to their conversation. She narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips making a small noise and storming away. So after all she'd done for them, they were just going to toss her away like she was yesterday's trash were they. She thought not, she would show them who was boss here and she had just the devious plan to do it too.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

A few hours had passed since Alexx had mated with Ironhide and as she lay snugly in his metal arms she thought about all the things she'd been through with the mechs. From first meeting them to the battle in Egypt where she got kidnapped by the ASTS until now. Thomas had told her that the bond between a Shifter and their mates was a strong one, but she'd never anticipated exactly  _how_ strong the bond would be, she felt as if she would be willing to give her life to protect any one of her mates and that thought made her stop and think on it a bit more. Honestly, if she was put in a situation where she was either going to stop one of her mates dying by giving up her life or keeping her life and attempting to save her mate's life by way of politics, could she really give up her own life for a being that would undoubtedly live a thousand times longer than her? Would she? Looking over to the recharging holoform beside her, the way he seemed so calm while asleep and thinking about the faces of all of her mates she decided that yes she  _could_ give up her own life to protect them and yes she most definitely  _would_ give up her own life for them, in a heartbeat.

Slowly her eyes closed as she began to remember a few hours ago when she'd first been let out of the med bay by Ratchet and her heat had struck with the intent of making her bow down to it's strength.

_**~Flashback~** _

_**She walked out of the med bay and all at once a strong cramping sensation rushed through her body causing her to almost double over with the pain. However, as soon as it came it passed and she was left still hunched over and breathing a little deeply, standing up straight again she went to take a step, but this time she was overcome with an extreme sense of horniness. The sensation was so much that she could feel her face begin to heat up, her heartbeat sped up as did her breathing and her palms grew sweaty. Steadily taking a step forward she groaned at the friction her pants caused between her legs and she repeated the action quietly groaning again. Soon she saw the Autobot leader come back into the base after doing his round of guard duty and it was almost as if she acquired tunnel vision, all she could see in her mind was herself riding his spike until she came and didn't realise that she was walking forward until Optimus' holoform appeared in front of her.** _

_**"Alexx, it is good to see yo-oof" he said.** _

_**She slammed him up against his alt form before he could finish his sentence and had her lips slanted over his cutting off any other words he could speak. The soldiers jumped at the sound of metal hitting metal and they all stopped to stare when they realised that Alexx had Optimus pinned to his alt mode. Eventually the female broke away to breathe and when she did her hand slipped down over his holoform's chest plates and down to his panel which had quickly become heated.** _

_**"Alexx, is something wron-what are you doing?" He asked.** _

_**The Shifter femme looked into his eyes and her other hand grabbed one of his smoke stacks making him moan loudly.** _

_**"Fuck me" she growled.** _

_**She spoke through gritted teeth, but the notion of what exactly she wanted was enough to have his spike hardening immediately. However, he was cautious with her only just being released from the med bay he didn't want to rush into anything and cause her any more harm. So...he quickly contacted Ratchet.** _

_**:Prime to Ratchet:** _

_**:What is it Prime?:** _

_**Silence for a few seconds while he moaned as she started dragging her nails down his smoke stack and across his panel.** _

_**:Alexx is...uh...Alexx appears to be rather...aroused. What has...uhng...what would have caused this?...Oh:** _

_**Quietly the medic chuckled to himself at the noises his leader was making. Obviously Alexx was doing something rather sinful to his form, so much that he could hardly string a sentence together.** _

_**:I would expect that the dehydrated and malnourished state she was in caused her reproductive functions to...uh...take a back seat as the humans say and now that she is healthy again, her heat cycle has returned full force:** _

_**Optimus groaned something in Cybertronian that Ratchet couldn't quite make out before he spoke again.** _

_**:What am I to...oh Primus!...What am I to do?:** _

_**:Indulge her Optimus, give her what she needs:** _

_**:But what if-:** _

_**:-You'll not harm her Optimus. I wouldn't have allowed her to leave the med bay if she weren't healthy:** _

_**The large mech grunted something and then shut the link off causing Ratchet to stand at his tool tray and start to chuckle. The human that was in there, having never heard the mech laugh before seemed worried, especially since the medic appeared to be laughing at nothing. Optimus on the other hand, had his servos full of Shifter femme and the ferocity with which she was attempting to get him to respond, was causing him to respond in ways like he hadn't since before the war. Sensing that she wasn't going to give up anytime soon the mech picked her up off the floor, causing her to wrap her legs around his waist and climbed into his alt form, with some difficulty. Once in there, he reversed his real form out of the base and headed towards a private area, getting there in almost record time and once they were there, Optimus allowed himself to let go a little. He began to kiss her back and every time her hands or nails ran over his audio finals, smoke stacks or chest plates he would buck up into her making her growl. This time though he knew he wouldn't be able to overload in his panel, the last time he had done that the human who had washed him and seemed quite perplexed to find a translucent, but slightly silvery and gooey substance in his panel and the large mech didn't wish to reveal to said human what said substance was.** _

_**"Alexx...oh...Alexx please. We must...ungh...we must exit my...oh Primus...we must exit my Alt form" he managed.** _

**_The Shifter femme gave him an odd and heated look and the mech took both of her hands in his servos gently._ **

**_"I cannot overload in my panel again, I'm afraid I must transform if we are to do this" he said._ **

**_Alexx nodded and his holoform disappeared while she scrambled out of his alt form. His holoform reappeared by one of the walls of the base and as expected, the Shifter femme was on him faster than he could say 'frag'. His real form transformed and came to sit next to where his holoform was, his knees bent and his panel open. He watched as Alexx divested herself of her clothing and his spike twitched as he saw her naked form with his real optics. The holoforms retracted his own panel and Alexx jumped onto his waist causing him to turn around and gently press her against the wall._ **

**_"Are you ready Alexx?" He asked._ **

**_The Shifter femme just growled and pulled him in for a bruising kiss, taking that as a yes the holoform slipped his spike into her warmth and groaned again at the feeling. Slowly he pulled out and looked into her eyes before he thrust back in again giving a bit of a smile when she moaned, repeating the action his real form took his spike into his servo and began to pump it in time with his holoform thrusting into Alexx. It was slow, Optimus knew what Alexx wanted, knew what she needed, but he also knew that going at his pace the femme would get more gratification from it. He didn't adhere to her pleas for him to go faster, instead he kissed her and nuzzled her neck._ **

**_"I know it is uncomfortable Alexx, but I need you to trust me can you do that?" He asked._ **

**_Alexx looked deep into his eyes and nodded, her arms going around his neck as she pressed her lips to his in a heated and passionate kiss before pulling away and putting her mouth next to his audio receptor._ **

**_"Always" she whispered._ **

**_Optimus nodded and sped up just enough to give her additional pleasure, but not enough to send her to the edge or indeed over it. Her hands were everywhere and Optimus soon realised that she was pulling at his chest plates so he slowed his movements right down._ **

**_"Alexx, this is dangerous, if we do this there is a possibility that we will be mated for life" he said._ **

**_The Shifter femme shrugged a little as much as she could during the circumstances and groaned before she managed a sweet smile._ **

**_"I don't care" she stated._ **

**_Optimus nodded and allowed his chest plates to open, his spark pulsed not as fast as her heart but not as slowly as it usually did. Removing one of his servos from her hip, Optimus captured one of her hands and slowly moved it to the metal of his spark chamber._ **

**_"Touch the metal, it's very sensitive" he whispered._ **

**_Alexx smiled deviously and began to rapidly move her fingers over the metal of his spark chamber causing his holoform and his real form to moan loudly. Due to the extra stimulation, the mech sped up his thrusts and thrust into her harder too. She wailed in pleasure and Optimus' real form sped his own servo up and soon enough they were both right on the precipice of pleasure._ **

**_"Please?" Alexx begged._ **

**_Optimus nodded and sped his thrusts up even more bringing them right to the edge. Unconsciously he pressed his chest into hers his spark migrating from its chamber and touching upon her chest._ **

**_"Fall with me Alexx" he said._ **

**_Alexx nodded and her head flew back as she let out a loud and pleasure filled scream as she came, her inner muscles spasming around him and causing him to overload within her while his real form spilt his fluids on the grass in front of him. Optimus slowed down his thrusts until he stopped completely and he leaned his forehead against hers as his intakes calmed down._ **

**_"I love you Optimus" she said._ **

**_Optimus rumbled as his spark retreated back into his chest and his chest plates closed again. He pressed a kiss to her lips and smiled_ **

**_"I love you too Alexx, do you feel better now?" He asked._ **

**_Alexx nodded against his head and took in a deep breath._ **

**_"Much better" she replied._ **

**_~End Flashback~_ **

She came to as the fire that she'd felt before came back and she groaned. Carefully she slipped out of the bed and got herself dressed before stepping out of her quarters and heading out into the fresh air. She hated it when she was in heat, it made her feel like a wanton whore or something, always needing sex or orgasms to get relief from the pain. A sigh escaped her as she looked around and suddenly there was a presence behind her, a presence that she knew very well and a presence that caused the burning need to start up again.

"Hey lil lady, wha' ya doin' out here at dis tima de night?" Jazz asked.

She whimpered and put her head down, wrapping her arms around herself as she shook with repressed need.

"I'm in heat and I hate it Jazz" she replied.

The mech behind her transformed and activated his human holoform. He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her middle while putting his head on her shoulder.

"Why'dya hate it?" He questioned.

Alexx put her hands on his and leaned back against him sighing and closing her eyes.

"Because it makes me feel like some kind of whore, always needing to be fucked" she answered.

At hearing this Jazz stiffened up and he grabbed her arms and turned her around.

"Don' ya say dat. Back on Cybertron we didn't 'ave words like Whore, Slut, Harpy wha'eva, pleasure weren't somethin' ta be 'shamed of. 'N fact, pleasure were  _encouraged_  between couples, no matta where it were" he explained.

The Shifter femme looked into his eyes and saw that he was telling the truth and that somewhat made her feel a little better. She went to say something, but the need inside her peaked and caused a twinge of pain to radiate up from her cooch to her uterus, almost like a uterine contraction.

"What's wrong?" Jazz asked.

Alexx looked up at him, her hazel eyes darker with desire and list.

"I  _need_ you" she growled.

The silver mech caught on to what she was saying and nodded. He took her hand and led her to his alt form, opening the passenger door for her and letting her slip in before his holoform just appeared in the driver's seat.

"I got just the place" he said.

He started his engine and headed away from the base.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

Soon they arrived at a cliff and Jazz got out of his alt form before walking around to the passenger side and opening the door. He helped Alexx out of his alt mode and transformed as soon as she was on her feet.

"Dis is de only place the otha humans know nothin' 'bout" he said.

Alexx nodded and Jazz smiled at her before he pulled her to his form. He kissed her lightly and then slipped his human hand under her shirt.

"Am I right in thinking' dat ya don' want no foreplay?" He asked.

The Shifter femme nodded and Jazz nodded back before getting right down to business. He carefully helped her out of her clothing before laying her down on the grass, he then zapped his own clothing off and brought her legs up around his waist.

"Ya ready?" He asked.

Alexx nodded and the caramel skinned man thrust into her, making sure to stay still for a few minutes so that she could get used to his size before he began to thrust his hips. As he pulled out, he rolled his hips backwards and as he thrust back in, he rolled his hips forwards making sure that he touched every inch of her so she could get maximum pleasure. As he did this his hand travelled over her body, first playing with her nipples, arching his back in an awkward manner so that he could take the rosy nub of her right breast into his mouth, before doing the same to the other one. His hands then meandered down her body, kneading at her hips before one of them settled between her legs and he used his thumb to rub her clit in time with his thrusts. His real form had his spike exposed, but he wasn't tending to it as he lay on his side and watched his holoform make love to his mate, the large organ was resting against his abdominal plates and twitching excitedly as gloopy fluid leaked from the top and dripped down to the grass below. His optics scanned over Alexx's body taking in how beautiful she looked as she was being spiked and he decided that he'd never seen anything more beautiful.

Soon enough, all three were coming close to their ends and Jazz's real form had taken to simply trailing a claw up and down his spike, not pumping it more caressing it, but the appendage was twitching like mad and more and more gloopy fluid dribbled out of the tip before he heard Alexx scream in pure ecstasy as she came. He wasn't long after and his real spike shot his fluids up towards his chest and some landed on the grass too as his optics shorted out and a moan escaped his vocals. His holoform slowed down his thrusts until he stopped while Jazz's real spike twitched after releasing.

"Ya 'kay now?" He asked

Alexx looked at him and nodded before she lay back on the grass, her chest heaving as she fought to regain her breath. Jazz smiled and pulled himself out of her before flopping over to the side and pulling her towards him.

"Ya neva gotta be 'fraid of bein' called a Whore with us Alexx, we very open 'bout our pleasure partners an' we encourage pleasure. Who gives a frag if ya enjoy 'avin' sex, if ya enjoy it why stop" he said.

The Shifter femme smiled and ran her fingers over his hand that was on her stomach.

"I love you Jazz" she whispered.

Jazz smiled and leaned down to press a kiss to her temple

"An' I love you" he replied


	27. Chapter 27

**(A Few Weeks Later)**

A few weeks had passed since Alexx had come into heat and after finally mating with Ironhide and Jazz she was feeling much better. However, once he'd learned what truly transpired between her and Optimus, Ratchet began to express much concern over the Shifter femme's mental health. At first, he didn't believe the Autobot leader when he'd said that he and Alexx had initiated a spark bond, saying that it was completely impossible, but when he'd scanned the femme, he'd confirmed what the Prime had said and it was safe to say that he'd gone into a rant about how Optimus was stupid for allowing it to happen and how stupid Alexx was for allowing it to happen and then he ranted about how stupid  _he_ was for not figuring it out sooner. Once he'd calmed down, Ratchet had explained that it wasn't that he was angry at Optimus and Alexx for doing what they did, it was more the fact that he was unsure about what such a bond would do to her mind.

"I'm fine Ratchet, I promise" Alexx said.

Ratchet had given her a look and cycled his intakes before kneeling down so that he could come face to face with her.

"It's not a question of whether you feel fine Alexx, the bond in which you and Optimus created was meant for Cybertronians as we have enormous processors and can deal with having another Cybertronian in our mind. You however and please do not take this the wrong way, but humans, Shifter or not, do not have the same capacity as we Cybertronians do. I am merely worried about the adverse effects a bond of this sort will cause" he explained.

Alexx nodded slightly and then sighed, before she looked up at the medic again.

"Ratchet, I promise that if I start feeling funny, I'll come and see you" she stated.

The medic cycled his intakes and gave a bit of a smile before his holoform came up behind her and pulled her into a hug.

"You make sure that you do, at the  _slightest_ problem. I don't care if it's a headache from eyestrain or because you are tired, you come to me" he ordered.

Alexx chuckled and hugged him back before giving him a kiss. And nuzzling him.

"I will love...now. How about I go meet these new Autobots that landed a few hours ago?" She asked.

Optimus and Ratchet nodded as the latter held his servo out for her to climb upon. When she had done so, both mechs walked out of the med bay and towards the new mechs who had landed just a few hours prior.

"Mirage, WheelJack, Roadbuster, Leadfoot, Topspin. This is Alexx Lennox, Alexx meet Mirage..." Ratchet began.

A cherry red Ferrari 485 Italia transformed and the mech walked over to look at the femme stood in Ratchet's servo.

"Pleased to-a meet you Alexx" he said.

Alexx smiled at his Italian accent and then Ratchet pointed to the Mercedes Benz E550.

"WheelJack" he said.

The Merc transformed into an old and frail looking mech who walked up to them.

"Oooh...there is something different about this human Optimus" he said.

Optimus looked over at Alexx and gave a small smile in reassurance.

"I believe that is her story to tell Que old friend" he said.

WheelJack nodded and then Ratchet introduced all of the others and Alexx decided that she would show the new mechs what was so different about her. So before their very optics, she Shifted into her Black Panther form and sat upon Ratchet's servo like that. WheelJack was surprised to say the least and started asking questions to which Alexx gave as many answers to as she could, once she'd Shifted back into her human form of course.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(A few hours later)**

A few hours later, Alexx was sat outside on guard duty with Ratchet when she heard an engine coming up the road. When she looked up, she saw a sleek yellow Camaro with black racing stripes coming up the road and she gave a bit of a smile. As the Camaro stopped near Ratchet, she gave a little wave.

"Hey" she said.

The Camaro transformed and looked at her, his kind blue optics and puppy dog face instantly made her go awww and the mech whistled. Ratchet then transformed and began to speak in Cybertronian with the yellow mech who then looked at Alexx.

"You are the one who saved Samuel's parental units from Ravage?" He asked.

Alexx nodded and leaned back a little.

"That's me, got myself kidnapped for it too" she replied.

Bumblebee warbled a little and suddenly a human version of the sweet mech appeared next to her. He whistled a little and then pulled her into a hug.

 _"Thank you very much"_ The voice of Elvis said.

Alexx chuckled and hugged the yellow bot back.

"You're welcome" she said.

Then just as it had appeared, the holoform disappeared and the mech walked inside. Alexx sat back down on the crate she had been sat on and smiled after the yellow bot.

"You know, I think I prefer the mech holoforms. The human ones, though equally as attractive aren't  _as_ attractive as the mechs they represent" she said.

Then without warning, a human sized Ratchet appeared next to her.

"That may be so Alexx, but the human holoforms are safer for you" he stated.

Alexx turned around and snorted.

"Oh come off it Ratchet, mating with four autonomous robotic organisms isn't safe by itself anyway. I  _much_ prefer the mech holos" she argued.

The medic opened his mouth to speak, but Alexx beat him to it and she took his top lip into her mouth and allowed her tongue to mingle with his glossa before she pulled away.

"No more human holos unless they're needed for other humans" she whispered.

Ratchet looked into her eyes and then pulled her forward into a passionate embrace, retreating only to speak.

"As you wish" he said.

He then captured her lips with his own and started rubbing his hands down her spine, causing her to shiver in delight and to moan. Ratchet pulled away quickly

"Did I hurt you?" He asked.

Alexx shook her head.

"No, quite the opposite" she replied

His optic ridges furrowed for a moment until he gathered what she meant.

"Oh?" He asked.

A devious smirk appeared upon his lips and he started rubbing his fingers up and down her back again.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Elsewhere/Mrs Reade)**

She growled as she stalked around her house. After managing to get one of the boneheads of the ASTS to drop her home she went straight to work planning that Clive's demise. How dare he push her away when he found something better,  _no-one_ knew how to get into a Shifter's head better than another Shifter... _no-one_  and that pompous idiot thought that some alien robots could capture the little bitch did he? Well she was purposely going to make sure that every wrench she had was going to be thrown into the works for this. The ASTS would rue the day they double crossed Mrs. Norma Reade former elder of the feline family of Shifters and she had just the plan to do it too. A sick smirk appeared across her lips as she picked up several bottles of liquid X and several bottles of Liquid Y and poured equal amounts into different containers, with that done she pulled out several plastic bottles with small holes in, that had the option to slide a glass compartment between the top and bottom to reduce consumption and she pulled the glass compartment out of each. Next, she tipped the liquid X into the bottom of each of the bottles and replaced the glass compartment before adding the liquid Y to the top, her plan...when the bottles were thrown the glass compartments would smash bringing the liquid X and liquid Y together and the toxic gas it produced would escape through the holes. Well...that was what she  _hoped_ would happen.

As soon as she was done with putting the ingredients in the specially made bottles, she carefully packed them so that the glass compartments dividers wouldn't smash and put them away. Now was the planning of how to execute her plan, though getting her home made bombs into the prison after the attack left the front gate practically destroyed and the guards dead would be the easy part, but all she wanted to do was destroy Clive so that she could become the leader of the ASTS. A dreamy smile appeared on her face as she looked forwards and daydreamed about what it would be like, Mrs. Norma Reade, leader of the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad she would be the first ever Shifter to lead a rebellion against her own kind and then maybe she'd start getting some respect. She chuckled as she started to write down her plan of attack.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobot base)**

Alexx panted as she rolled off of Ratchet and a chuckle escaped her as she lay in the sun next to the holoform. Ratchet's real form drove back towards the pair and the holoform wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in.

"So...you found my main turn on spot" she said.

Ratchet hummed and chuckled as he nuzzled into her neck, sending microscopic pulses through the metal of his lips to touch her skin and make her hairs stand on end.

"Indeed, but you have yet to find any of mine" he stated.

The Shifter femme looked over at him and raised herself up on one arm to narrow her eyes at him.

"Is that a challenge Ratchet?" She asked.

The mech smiled and rumbled before he pulled her on top of him again while moving his servos came up to rub against her shoulders.

"Take it however you intend to my dear, I was simply stating a fact" he replied.

Alexx chuckled and then leaned down so that her mouth was next to his audio processor.

"Then I take it as a challenge to find your turn on spots Ratchet. Beware, I will be making use of  _every_ opportunity I can find" she whispered.

The medic laughed and then put her back on the crate, before he stiffened.

"Get dressed, Director Mearing is on her way" he said.

Alexx nodded and got herself dressed quickly. Though she made sure that she was presentable before she climbed off of the crate and got into Ratchet's alt form.


	28. Chapter 28

**(A Few Days Later)**

A few days had passed and in those few days Alexx had been thinking about how she seemed to be a bit of a liability to her mates because not only rid she have Thera to contend with, she also had the ASTS after her and it seemed as if they were around almost every corner. So, she'd come up with what she thought to be a brilliant plan, the only thing she had to do now was get her mates to agree. Walking out of her quarters, she headed towards the main hanger where she found Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet all sat in a perfect line along the back of the building and she walked up to them.

"I wanna learn how to fight" she blurted.

The humans that were milling around and talking stopped what they were doing and looked towards the Shifter femme, everything was quiet as they all waited for the mechs replies. Everyone knew how much this female meant to the four mechs, the way they were all distraught when she'd gone missing from Egypt was proof enough of how much they cared for her, perhaps it would be good for her to learn how to defend herself even if Thera knew, it couldn't hurt for Alexx to know too. The area was silent until the telltale sounds of transformation sequences broke it, Optimus looked down at the female and then knelt down so that he was face to face with her.

"Are you sure about this Alexx?" He asked.

The Shifter femme nodded and looked at them all with a serious expression. Before she could speak however, Jazz piped up.

"Why d'ya wanna learn how ta fight when ya got us ta defend ya?" He questioned.

Alexx sighed and plopped herself onto the floor, only to get up again and situate herself on Optimus' offered servo.

"Because, as much as I love you guys defending me, let's face it, what girl  _wouldn't_ love four handsome alien robots defending her, but as much as I love it I wanna be able to take care of myself. What if you guys are in a battle of your own and I happen to get roped into it? You can't be defending me while you're trying to fight for your own lives. I'm a distraction as I am now, my hand-to-hand combat...yeah it needs a bit of work, but I don't know squat about fighting with a weapon and we all know that fights, especially with the Decepticons and all who're involved with them, aren't going to always be fair, if at all" she explained.

Ratchet looked at her and then nodded, she was right about fights being unfair with the Decepticons and if they hadn't already figured out that Alexx is the mate of four Autobots, one of which happens to be a Prime, they could and no doubt  _would_  use her against them.

"As much as it pains me to say it Optimus, Jazz...Alexx is right. The Decepticons and those who are involved with them could find out about her being our mates, if they haven't already and use her against us. I believe it would do more harm than good to allow her to continue the way she is" he said.

Alexx looked at the medic and sent a thankful glance his way before looking back to Optimus.

"I'm a fast learner" she said.

Optimus cycled his intakes and looked at the other mechs.

_**:Ironhide, what is your say on this?:** _

_**:If I'm honest Prime, being the sparkling of Lieutenant Colonel Lennox, it is rather imperative that she learns combat, Thera has shown that she knows a little combat, but...I'm afraid I agree with Ratchet:** _

Optimus nodded and thought about it himself before he cycled his intakes.

"Very well, but we  _must_ inform Lieutenant Colonel Lennox about this" he said.

The other mechs nodded in agreement and Alexx smiled at them all. Finally she would no longer feel like a spare part.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Elsewhere/Mrs. Reade)**

After having safely devised her plan to get her concoction into the ASTS base, she was itching to put it into action, however she calmed herself.

"Patient is the kingfisher as he waits for his next meal" she muttered.

She thought of all the things she could do once she was in the boss' chair at the head of the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad, oh it would be terrific just like it was back when she was younger. Having been born to two Alphas, she'd been shunned by them simply because she was not born an Alpha. It was rare for a Beta to be born to two Alphas, but when it did happen the Alphas were usually shamed if they decided to keep their child. So she was cast out and given to a Beta family who had trouble conceiving. Oh how she hated her parents, both foster and real. For a couple who  _couldn't_ have children, they were ruthless with her, never letting her out, never letting her do anything without them.

Truthfully, Mrs. Reade never thought that she would know the life of a peasant, once learning that she was born of royal blood that was the one thing she wanted. She wanted to be treated as what she was...royal. When she'd met the human, well...that had most definitely put the icing on the cake for the then elders, those old coots stuck by the rules that the ancestors laid down many millennia ago and never _once_ deviated from them. When they found out about her betrothal to a human, it caused uproar and if she was honest, she couldn't have been happier. Finally someone had the gall to stick up to the elders and, as much as she hated to admit it, it was Alexx's grandfather that had been the one to do it.

She'd never forget the day an Alpha came to her defense, it proved to her that not  _all_ Alphas were snobs that took their position as royalty too seriously and she'd even formed a friendship with that man, not to mention been a part of his daughter's life for many years. It was him who had promised that his daughter would marry her son and she was so happy. Then the ASTS ruined everything, it was they who captured Jacqui, that other male and her son, it was they who put her son and that worthless piece of flesh into that arena together and it was they who had killed her son. Now finally,  _finally_  after fifty years of pain and sorrow, she was ready to take what should be hers. Any child that Alexx and this other male have, she will take and she will raise him as if he were her own and then she would make sure that he won _all_ of the battles between the other males and she could be a grandmother, just as she wanted to be.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Autobots/A Few Hours Later)**

Alexx grunted as she was pinned to the floor by Ironhide, sweat made her hair stick to her forehead and her clothing to stick to the wet parts of her body, namely under her breasts, her chest and the small of her back as well as her legs and butt. They'd been at this for just over an hour and a half and though she was a fast learner, it seemed that natural skill was no match for experience.

"Focus Alexx!" Ironhide growled.

The Shifter femme growled back and as he rolled off of her she sat up. A thought entered her head, one that caused her to smirk and give a slight chuckle

"What's funny?" The black mech asked.

She looked at him and chuckled as she got to her feet.

"I was just thinking, what an intricate form of foreplay were engaging in" she replied.

Ironhide stopped for a minute to assess what she'd just said and in that minute Alexx ran towards him and managed to take his legs out from under him. Settling herself on his waist, she pinned his arms down and looked down at him, a drop of sweat falling from her nose and onto his cheek.

"That was a dirty trick" he said.

Alexx chuckled and nuzzled him slightly.

"I got you down didn't I?" She asked

Ironhide huffed and rolled them over so that he was on top of her, his mouth coming down to just above hers, so tantalisingly close, yet still so far.

"Again" he whispered.

He then pulled himself away from her and got up. Alexx huffed and got up, getting into an attack position while Ironhide got himself into a defensive crouch. Alexx then attacked Ironhide and he dodged her with ease while landing a mocking tap to her ass.

"You need to be faster than that" he said.

Alexx turned around and growled at him, her eyes narrowing as she stood there.

"That wasn't fair, you're a tease 'hide" she stated.

Ironhide placed his hands on his hips, Will had agreed to allow the mechs to train her, providing they started her off with human holoforms. Heck, even Bumblebee joined in with the training sometimes, teaching her how to dodge and defend. Every mech who trained her, was training her to do different things, Ironhide taught her mostly hand-to-hand combat as well as weapons and target practice, Bumblebee taught her how to defend and dodge and sneak, Jazz taught her with melee weapons, Optimus also taught melee weapons and Ratchet, well Ratchet was teaching her how to use her own poison as well as studying it and attempting to concoct an antidote for it, in case something went wrong.

"You said yerself that Decepticons and all those who are associated with them ain't gonna be playing fair most of the time, if at all. The Decepticons will use any way they can to get you down, even if they gotta resort ta seducin' ya" Ironhide said.

Alexx snorted and then shook her head. Though she got the point, she knew that she'd never be seduced by any Decepticon or anyone that worked with them. She sighed and got into another stance, Ironhide did the same until he heard her stomach rumble, straightening up the black mech scanned his mate and found that not only was she hungry, but she was slightly dehydrated too.

"You need nourishment and fluids. Rest, we'll continue later" he said.

The Shifter femme nodded and straightened up before grabbing a towel and turning her back on her mate. She almost jumped sky high when said mate came up behind her and gripped her hips.

"You got any idea how attractive you look right now?" He whispered.

Alexx turned her head slightly and found that now it was her lips that were tantalisingly close to his.

"I'm sure I do. But guess what?" She asked.

Ironhide licked his lips and as Alexx moved closer he went to kiss her.

"I'm hungry" she whispered.

She then walked off and left him hanging there. The mech smirked and deactivated his holoform.


	29. Chapter 29

**(A few weeks later)**

A few weeks went by and Alexx was now doing much better with her fighting. Her target practice was dead on and thanks to Ratchet, she now knew how to secrete her poison at will, as well as coat foreign and sharp objects in it. During this time though, the medimech had been studying the poison and learning exactly what it does and finding out if he could concoct an antidote to it, much like the way scientists develop antivenom for snakes. So far, he'd managed to isolate the correct proteins, but he was having trouble actually making the antidote. Because of this, he was beginning to get frustrated, what with the fact that Commander Morshower and Director Mearing had said that they were to be moving from the Diego Garcia base to one that was inevitably larger in Washington.

Currently, Alexx was in the med bay with Ratchet, who was still attempting to create the antidote. Until now, the Shifter femme hadn't thought about what could help the medic in discovering the cure, however she wasn't entirely sure if it would work or not. Ratchet cycled his intakes in frustration and slammed his fist down on his table, causing the Shifter femme to jump a little.

"You alright?" She asked.

The medic turned to face his mate and once again cycled his intakes, before walking over the wall and sitting himself down on the floor, allowing Alexx to come over to him and climb upon his leg up to his knee where she perched herself.

"This antidote to your poison is proving harder to make than I originally perceived it to be. I have tried everything, but nothing is causing the poison molecules to disintegrate, instead they are simply killing the blood cells that I am testing" he explained.

Alexx tilted her head and then gave a small smile before her look turned thoughtful as she attempted to remember what Thomas had told her. As soon as she had remembered, her eyes went wide.

"Try my blood" she said.

Ratchet looked at her and raised an optic ridge, before shaking his head slightly.

"Your poison destroys blood cells and degrades the walls of veins, arteries and destroys all tissues within the body. What makes you think your blood will be different?" He asked.

The Shifter femme grinned.

"Thomas told me that Alpha Shifters are immune to the poison because they secrete it. One Alpha can poison another and all they'd receive is a simple stinging sensation throughout their body, it doesn't degrade the blood cells or tissues" she said.

Ratchet once again raised an optic ridge and held out his servo for her to climb upon, which she did and when she had settled herself he stood up and walked over to his table. Once there, he activated his holoform and plucked a syringe out of a human sized drawer along with a clean and sterile needle. He put the syringe on the needle, but left it in the packet while he looped a tourniquet around Alexx's arm to get the right vein. Once he had the vein, he took the needle out of the packet and inserted it into Alexx's arm and drew out some of her blood. When he was done, he grabbed a sterile cotton swab and put it above the needle as he pulled the sharp metal out of Alexx's arm. The swab was placed over the little hole that was left. Then Ratchet went to his medicinal fridge and pulled out the phial of her poison and prepared a slide.

He dropped a few drops of Alexx's blood onto a slide and then using another syringe, he drew some poison out of the phial and dropped a few drops into Alexx's blood on the slide. Then using his real optics, he watched for any sign of corrosion to Alexx's blood cells by the poison, but he was shocked when he found that the blood stayed the same. The medic looked away from the slide and looked down at his mate.

"It seems you were correct Alexx. I shall start working on this antidote straight away" he said.

Alexx nodded and pulled the cotton swab away from her arm, said goodbye and walked out of the med bay and towards where Ironhide was.

"Hey Ironhide, you free?" She asked.

The black mech transformed and looked down at her.

"Are you done with Ratchet?" He countered.

The Shifter femme nodded and Ironhide nodded too, before he knelt down and offered his servo to her. She climbed up onto it and the mech stood up before making his way outside to where the outdoor target practice area was.

"That old fragger still having problems finding the antidote to your poison?" He asked.

Alexx nodded and then chuckled.

"Well, he  _was_ until I told him to check my blood" she replied.

Ironhide stopped and gave her a confused look, so the femme explained to him what she'd explained to Ratchet and the mech nodded in understanding. He then put her down, transformed and used his holoform to help her with her target practice.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(A Few Hours Later)**

A few hours later, Alexx was now stood in the main hanger with her arms outstretched and Will was putting stuff in her arms. They were beginning to pack for moving to Washington and if she was honest, there was a lot of stuff to move, so much that she was glad that she was stronger than the normal humans. All of the mechs that were still in the base were helping and because of the threat to the important humans around the world, Jolt, Mudflap, Skids and Sideswipe had been sent around the world to provide protection for those humans.

"Can you take that over to Epps please?" Will asked.

Alexx nodded and walked over to the dark skinned man and gave him the things that were in her arms. Epps thanked her and once he'd done, Alexx gave him a hug.

"I'm gonna miss you" she said.

Epps chuckled and hugged her back.

"I'mma miss you too. But y'all can always come see me" he stated.

Alexx nodded and smiled.

"So you're going to go and work with the wreckers on the Xanthium?" She asked.

The dark skinned man nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, gotta get dat rocket all sorted and shit" he replied.

Alexx nodded and then hugged him again.

"You got everything?" She questioned.

Epps nodded and then Alexx pressed a kiss to his cheek.

"See ya later uncle Epps" she said.

The dark skinned man nodded and picked up his stuff and walked out of the base, heading over to Leadfoot and then they were off. The Shifter femme sighed and walked back into the base, she walked over to Optimus and climbed up into his cab. The mech activated his holoform and wrapped his arms around her as she curled up in his lap, she wasn't upset or anything she simply wanted to spend some time with her mate, which in the end no-one could blame her for.


	30. Chapter 30

**(A few months later)**

A few months passed and Ratchet had been able to create the antidote for Alexx's poison and had distributed it amongst the soldiers, in case they came into contact with another Alpha Shifter who knew how to use their poison. The Autobots and humans had moved to the Washington base and it was much roomier, Ratchet had set up a new med bay, Ironhide had found a place to call the armoury, where one of the walls had been knocked down so it could also be a target practice area too. Jazz and Optimus preferred to be in the main hanger with the rest of the Autobots and Alexx, well right now Alexx was nowhere to be seen. Will had been searching around for the Shifter femme, but he'd had no luck finding her and it was worrying him. He hadn't stopped for a second to consider the calendar and there was no sign that he would anytime soon.

Optimus had managed to calm the human down and had offered to go out and search for the Shifter femme, he'd tried all of her usual haunts except one, which was where he was on his way to now. There was an abandoned field and hill just a few miles north of the base and Alexx usually spent her time there as the view was absolutely beautiful. As soon as he got within a few metres of the hill, the large mech stopped dead. The scent that was wafting down from that hill had his spike hard and throbbing in an instant, scanning the area around him he was pleased to find that there were no humans around and he transformed. With this new height, he could just about see the brow of the hill and his intakes stuttered when his optics zoomed in on his mate.

There she was, laying on her back in the grass, fully naked and with her hands working furiously between her legs. His sensitive audio receptors picked up on her wanton moans and he was drawn towards the femme. His optics stayed on her, more importantly they focussed on the movements between her legs, his spike pulsed with every moan she emitted and he fought his own moans so he wouldn't disturb her. However, it seemed it wasn't his day because Alexx stopped what she was doing and looked up at him.

"Fuck! Optimus don't scare me like that!" She hissed.

She sat up and pulled her legs up towards her chest before reaching for her clothing. With a big finger, Optimus moved the material coverings away from her and she glared up at him, her scent was still strong and for now Optimus fought the urge to retract his panel so that he could release his spike.

"Give me my clothes Optimus" she demanded.

The large mech smirked and activated his holoform, the human version of himself coming to rest on his knees in front of her. His servo landed gently on her shoulder and began to push slightly. Confused, Alexx obeyed and lay back down, her knees still bent though so once she was on her back again, he brought his servos to her knees and slipped one between them. Alexx kept her knees firmly together.

"Open love" he said.

The Shifter femme looked at him and then raised an eyebrow before she opened her legs again, Optimus nearly groaned at the sight of her swollen and dripping quim and his spike pulsed more insistently behind his panel, but he ignored it in favour of finding her hands and bringing them back to the mound of skin and little patch of hair.

"Continue what you were doing" he whispered.

He then leaned forward and pressed his metal lips to hers and groaned at the taste of her tongue. When he pulled away, she brought her hands up to push him off of her, but he caught her fingers in his mouth and his optics flickered with the amount of information he received from her taste. Oh yes, she was most definitely in heat and she'd obviously already had many orgasms. He moved back after licking her fingers clean and smirked at her.

"Continue" he said.

Alexx shook her head and then sat up, looking him over and smirking herself.

"I'll continue what I was doing, if you join me" she stated.

The mech smirked again and rocked back to sit on his calves and retracted his panel exposing his leaking spike. His servo came to wrap around the hard, metal phallus and he slowly started to pump it, his thumb rubbing the tip every time his servo got to the top. As Alexx watched this, her own hands came down and started to slowly rub herself in time with his fist moving up and down his spike. Alexx moaned at the feel of her slick fingers moving over her engorged flesh and Optimus answered her moan with one of his own. Soon enough the sight, scent and sound of Alexx was too much for him and he leaned over his mate, his spike nudging her nether lips.

"Do you have any idea how beautiful you look?" He asked.

The Shifter femme shook her head and Optimus nuzzled her before he kissed her again.

"I need you on my spike now" he whispered.

Alexx wrapped her legs around his waist and linked her ankles just above his metal buttocks.

"Take me" she said.

Not needing to be told twice, Optimus thrust himself into her tight, wet heat, groaning at the feel of it enclosing his spike. Without waiting for her to be used to his girth, he pulled back so that he was almost all of the way out before thrusting back in. He repeated this time and time again, until he could tell that she was getting close and so was he.

"Bond with me Alexx" he whispered.

Alexx nodded and the Autobot leader opened his chest plates as he got even closer to his overload. As soon as he was on the brink, he pressed his chest to hers and as the bond happened both fell into a spiral of pleasure, before being covered in a gloopy clear substance with silver specks in it. Alexx gasped and looked up just as Optimus' real form had finished ejaculating.

"Did you have to?" She panted.

Optimus chuckled and looked down at her.

"You look astonishing when covered in my fluids Alexx" he replied.

Alexx chuckled and shook her head, Optimus smirked and nuzzled her before rolling over to the side and pulling out of her.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(ASTS)**

Clive growled in a very human way as he paced in front of his desk, the two men who had been sent out to find Alexx had once again come back empty handed and he was beginning to get annoyed with that. He went to sit at his desk and pressed a button on the mic that had recently been hooked up to the base.

"Dylan, get your ass into my office now!" He hissed.

He pressed the button again and sat there to wait for the only man he trusted fully to enter his office. The reason he trusted Dylan was because the good looking male had provided evidence that he could deliver what he was asked to even if that thing was hard to find. Soon, Dylan arrived at the office and knocked on the door.

"Enter!" Clive called.

The dark haired, thin male entered the office and closed the door behind him before coming to stand in front of the desk with his hands interlocked behind his back.

"Yes sir?" He asked.

Clive looked up at the handsome male and scowled.

"Get your fucking metal friends to step up their search for Alexx. I'm not willing to let them butcher me because we cannot provide the Shifters for them to use to rebuild their planet. FIND HER!" He yelled.

Dylan nodded and turned to walk out of the door. It was clear that Clive wasn't in the mood to be messed with today, what with the news from Hewey and Dewey that Alexx couldn't be found. Dylan had simply explained to the two newcomers who were trying to prove themselves, that they weren't looking hard enough. So now it was his job and the Decepticons would come in real handy with this one.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Autobot Base)**

Alexx and Optimus had made their way back to the base and Alexx was currently in the shower of her quarters. It was quite a big shower, one that you just walk in and it had a rainfall shower head. It was wonderful. She was washing her hair after the activities that had transpired between her and Optimus a few hours ago and she'd left the bathroom door open. Quite the stupid thing to do when one was in heat and she found this out as soon as two mechs came into the shower with her. Ironhide and Jazz used their human holoforms to join her in the shower, while Jazz took the pouf off of Alexx and began to wash her front while Ironhide began to massage her shoulders. It wasn't long until they were both buried inside of her and moving together in such a way that Alexx always had a spike inside of her. They continued until all three reached their peak and when the Shifter femme slumped against them, they held her up and continued to wash and massage her.


	31. Chapter 31

**(A Few Days Later)**

A few days passed and Alexx was enjoying what time she got with her mates, though quite often that time was interrupted by some...rather jealous newcomers. Since moving to this base in Washington, a few new recruits had joined the ranks and while she could handle the cat calls and the crude comments, she was beginning to get annoyed with the leering looks and unwelcome advances that they were giving/making. After a particular comment, she stormed into the med bay of course followed by the group of rowdy males, who stopped as soon as they saw the medic.

"Alexx, what is wrong?" Ratchet asked.

The Shifter femme glared at the males and growled at them.

"These pricks think it's nice and funny to try it on with me" she replied.

At first, the medic was confused. Try  _what_ on? But as soon as he looked the phrase up, his grip upon the table he was next to was enough to make the metal bend. It was safe to say that the group of males started to look a little worried.

"Calm down love, we were only kidding" one said.

Alexx growled.

"Kidding or not, I have told you  _many_ times that I am unavailable, yet you still make your disgusting advances with your intentions being  _less_ than friendly" she snarled.

As one of the men was about to say something, a deep growl came from behind Alexx and the males looked up to the medic only to cower in fear. Alexx looked confused at the reaction and then she looked up to see that Ratchet's optics were a brilliant shade of crimson.

"I would suggest, that if you males value your lives, you will leave my med bay  _before_ I forget temporarily that I am an Autobot. Alexx is truthful when she tells you that she is unavailable and neither me, nor any of her other three mates will be quite happy to hear that you have bothered her with your lustful intent again. Am I clear?" He asked.

The Shifter femme could hear that the medic was straining to be as calm as he possibly could and it almost made her want to go up there and try to calm him down... _almost._ Instead she settled for watching the group of men cower in their boots at the sight of the angry medic.

"Am I  _clear?_ " He asked.

The men nodded.

"Crystal" one said.

Ratchet nodded and picked up a wrench.

"Then leave.. _._ _Now!_ " He snarled.

The group of men scurried out of the med bay and slowly the medic calmed down. Alexx turned towards him and raised an eyebrow.

"You know that they're now gonna be scared to come in here?" She asked.

The medic looked down at his mate and growled.

"I am well aware of that, but I am also aware that they will no longer  _try it on_ with you" he replied

Alexx nodded and then climbed up onto her mate's table using him as a ladder.

"So I didn't know your optics could change colour" she stated.

The mech looked at her and cycled his intakes before offering her his servo. She walked onto his hand and sat down as he brought it up to optic level.

"Our optics have the ability to change colour, but only when we are angry. Those males were lucky that my optics only turned red, if they had turned black it would have been a different story" he explained.

This piqued Alexx's interest and she scrutinised him.

"What happens when your optics turn black?" She asked

The medic shook his head and once again cycled his intakes, a forlorn look appearing on his face plates.

"You wouldn't like to find out Alexx, of that I am sure" he answered.

Alexx nodded when she saw that look. If the thought of what happened when their optics turned black was enough to give Ratchet a tortured look then it must be bad. She sighed and leaned back in his hand, before she shot back up again.

"What's Optimus gonna think when those men tell him? Because I doubt they'll give him the whole story" she said.

Ratchet chuckled a little.

"That femme, is why data transfer is useful" he stated.

Alexx chuckled too and lay down upon his palm.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Several Hours Later)**

After the incident in the med bay, Alexx had gone outside to do a little sunbathing. Having not known what day it was, she had been surprised when she had received presents and cards from Optimus, Jazz and Ironhide. However, she was still waiting on the present and card from Ratchet, who had told her that what he had planned for her was a surprise, the anticipation of what was to come was almost overbearing and the Shifter femme could hardly keep still. A few more minutes passed and suddenly a shadow was cast over her, turning over Alexx looked up into the face of the medic who smiled down at her.

"Are you ready for your present femme?" He asked.

Alexx nodded and he knelt down and transformed, his mech holoform came to stand beside her and he held out his hand. Sitting up, the Shifter femme took it and Ratchet pulled her up before taking her into his alt form. Soon they were moving and it wasn't long until they reached their destination, though Alexx couldn't see as Ratchet had blindfolded her while en route. Once the Hummer had stopped, Ratchet took the blindfold off and Alexx gasped at the sight. Before her was a huge pool with a waterfall running down into it and a river running away from the pool so that the water didn't remain stagnant, it was simply beautiful.

"Wow Ratchet" she said.

The mech smiled and handed her a card, she took it and opened the envelope and pulled the card out. When she opened the card, something dropped into her lap and her eyes bugged when she saw it.

"What?" She asked.

She picked the small ring up and looked it over, it had strange symbols etched on it.

"What does it say?" She questioned.

Ratchet looked over and smiled.

"It is mine, Jazz's, Ironhide's and Optimus' names in Cybertronian" he replied.

Alexx looked over at him and slipped the ring onto her finger, before looking at it.

"It was a joint effort, with the help of William and after what happened in the med bay earlier, we felt that today would be the best day to give it to you" Ratchet explained.

The Shifter femme smiled and instantly she was in his lap and kissing him. She raked her nails over the top of his head, causing him to hiss before her hands came down to his chest plates and started caressing them which caused him to moan.

"I love you" she whispered.

Ratchet reciprocated in Cybertronian before he began to strip his mate. As soon as she was fully unclothed, he released his spike and thrust up into her. As he did, he made sure to rub his servos right down her spine causing her to moan loudly in pleasure. Soon she started to move upon him and they fell into a rhythm that matched the other's thrusts with perfect timing.

"Will you...will you bond with me Alexx?" Ratchet asked.

The Shifter femme nodded and as Ratchet got close to his overload, his chest plates opened and Alexx decided to be evil, she started to flit her fingers over the metal. Ratchet groaned and arched up into the touch.

"This will...ah! This will have to be quick...I will not...oh! Be able to hold off my overload in my real form...ugh! For long" he moaned.

Alexx nodded and as soon as she felt herself come close to orgasm, she pressed her chest to his and screamed out her release. As soon as she had calmed down, Ratchet's holoform disappeared and Ratchet started to transform around her, easily catching her in his servo as his panel opened and he overloaded just as he finished transforming. Alexx looked over his hand and watched his fluids spill from his spike in huge jets before she had the feeling of falling and a large jolt told her that Ratchet had fallen to his knees.

"Wow, that was...intense" she said.

Ratchet nodded as he struggled to regain control of his intakes, he pulled her to his chest plates, content to have finally bonded with her.


	32. Chapter 32

**(A few weeks later)**

A few weeks had passed since Ratchet had given Alexx the eternity ring from himself, Jazz, Ironhide and Optimus and the Shifter femme was very happy. The men who had bothered her on Valentines Day had been punished accordingly for hharassment and so far they hadn't bothered her again since, which she was very glad about. Recently, the Autobots had received word of Decepticon activity in Chicago so Optimus and Ratchet had gone to investigate. It was safe to say that Alexx wasn't very happy about this and she'd practically  _demanded_ to spar with Ironhide so she could take her mind off of what her other two mates were doing.

"I have a request to make before we begin" Ironhide said.

Alexx tilted her head and looked at him from where she stood in the room they used as a sort of dojo. She raised her eyebrow and waited for him to make his request, though by the look on his face she was sure that she wasn't going to like it one bit.

"What is it?" She asked.

Ironhide smirked and prepared himself for the argument he was sure was going to come once he stated his request.

"I want to see what Thera can do" he replied.

The Shifter femme's shoulders tensed up and she opened her mouth to protest, however Jazz, who had entered the little room just minutes before Ironhide had made his request, cleared his throat a little to gain Alexx's attention.

"Ah think it's a good idea 'lexx. Yanno wha' 'appens if yeh don' let Thera out every so often" he said.

Alexx looked at him and again went to protest, but then she thought about it and shrugged.

"Fine, on your heads be it" she sighed.

She then closed her eyes. The change was subtle, if you didn't know what you were looking for you'd never see it, but when she opened her eyes, they were Jade.

"So...you want to fight do you?" Thera asked.

Ironhide smirked and nodded.

"I wanna see how well ya do against me" he answered.

Thera's smirk matched his and she quickly and quietly got herself into a fighting stance.

"Let's be clear Ironhide, I'm not gonna go easy on you" she warned.

The black mech chuckled and took up his own stance.

"I didn't expect ya to" he said.

Within minutes, they began and Thera started by running up to Ironhide and aiming a punch at his head, which he dodged. He then aimed a kick at her ribs, which she too dodged and they continued like this for half an hour until Thera managed to land a kick on Ironhide's abdominal plates, causing him to fall onto his aft. The Shifter femme looked down at him as she slowly lowered her leg and both Ironhide and Jazz were shocked by the amount of power Thera possessed. As the weapons specialist got back up, he glared at the jade eyed female.

"All this time, you were holding Alexx back...why?" He asked.

Thera looked at him, never once dropping her stance and shrugged.

"She's not ready for the power I possess. Until she asked you to train her, she hadn't shown any interest in wanting to learn how to fight, which is bad" she began.

Jazz interrupted.

"Why's dat bad?" He asked.

Thera looked over at him, though she knew that Ironhide wouldn't attack her, she kept him in her peripheral visionary field.

"Shifters...when brought up with their own kind, usually show an interest in wanting to learn how to fight at a young age. Usually by the time Shifters are Alexx's age, they've already joined with their Shifter side and become powerful. That's what makes an Alpha Shifter, the ability to join with your Shifter half" she said.

Jazz nodded and Thera turned her gaze back to Ironhide.

"So far, Alexx has been doing good, but if I had given her even a  _tiny_ bit of the power I possess, she would've freaked and never wanted to spar again" she said.

Ironhide growled and clenched his fists.

"She's ready for it, you  _need_ to give her at lease  _some_ of the power you have" he said.

Thera growled back and lowered into a defensive crouch.

" _I_ will decide when she is ready and right now she is  _not_ ready, she is nowhere  _near_ ready. When I decide that she is ready,  _if_ I decide that she's ready, I'll slowly begin feeding her bits of my power until we are joined. However, just one warning...when we do join, Alexx won't be Alexx anymore" she explained.

Ironhide and Jazz looked at each other and then looked back at her.

"You'll fight both of us next" he said.

He wasn't happy that Thera had been keeping her power from Alexx, the Shifter femme  _needed_ that power if she was going to be able to fight proficiently and what was this about Alexx not being Alexx if she joined with Thera? If she wasn't going to be Alexx, then who was she going to be?

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(One Hour Later)**

Once Thera, Jazz and Ironhide were done with their sparring, Jazz had gone to sort some things out with the other mechs. With Optimus out, he was second in command so he had to make sure that everything was going well around the base. This left Thera and Ironhide alone in the llittle room and they were having an intense staring competition. Neither of them were going to back down, both had too much pride to be defeated, however they did notice that they seemed to be getting closer and closer together until they were both literally breathing the other's exhale. Then, Ironhide moved like lightning and his lips were crushed to hers in a searing kiss. He pulled away and smirked and with a growl, Thera pulled him in for a kiss that had twice the intensity of Ironhide's kiss, then she pulled away and smirked. At this Ironhide sense the challenge she was making and his smirk grew.

"If you wanna turn this into a challenge femme, I accept" he said.

Thera gave a grin that reached all the way to her eyes and she stepped even closer. She could feel the heat of his panel through her shirt and knew that he was aroused by their little competition.

"You're on  _old man_ " she stated.

Ironhide's eyes widened and he growled.

" _Old_!? I'll show you  _old_  you fragging femme!" He yelled.

He pounced on her and they fell to the ground in a muddle of flesh and metal rolling around. While they were rolling on the floor, Ironhide managed to get There's clothing off until she was in nought but her underwear and the next time he was on top, he retracted his panel, pushed her panties aside and thrust into her with a single move, causing the femme to growl in pleasure. Ironhide began a brutal pace, keeping his servos pinned on her shoulders so that she couldn't move and she squirmed a lot as he thrust into her over and over again with the tip of his spike bumping her cervix every time.

Soon, Thera managed to overpower the mech and rolled so that she was on top and then she started to ride him at a brutish pace, causing Ironhide to firmly attach his servos to her hips as he thrust up when she came down. The extra movement caused Thera to snarl with pleasure and then she gasped in surprise when Ironhide reached up and practically tore her bra from her body, causing her breasts to bounce into view. With a lot of effort because of her sheer strength, he managed to push himself into a sitting position and when he was there, he then struggled to get up to his pedes. Thera stopped all movement on him as he did this and gave him a funny look, Ironhide though merely grunted and slammed them up against a wall, where he pulled her legs up so that her knees hooked on his shoulders and he started to thrust into her again.

The new position had Alexx screaming loudly with pleasure and outside the room, Ironhide's real form was doing his best to keep himself quiet. He didn't really want to overload in his panel, but with all the humans milling around, he didn't really have a choice and soon both were giving in to their climax, only made ten times better by the fact that Ironhide had chosen that moment to bond with the femme.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Half an hour later)**

Optimus and Ratchet returned from their mission and it was clear to everyone that Optimus wasn't happy. Not only was the aura around him red, but he hadn't transformed either. Wheeljack had just finished giving Ironhide a new weapon when Director Mearing had come into the main hanger.

"Oh good! You're here! Me name's Que. I do hope you have answers for him, I've never seen him so upset before" he said.

Will came up to Mearing and cleared his throat a little, before looking at Optimus.

"Optimus, you remember Charlotte Mearing? Our Director of National Intelligence?" He asked.

Optimus didn't move and Mirage shook his head.

"E's in a bad mood, he's-a not talking to anybody today" he said.

Mearing looked at the cherry red mech, before raising an eyebrow and looking at Optimus,

"What's this, the silent treatment?" She asked.

Ironhide shook his head too.

"No, we've seen that and this is not that" he said.

The other mechs shook their heads and Que muttered a  _'no it's not'_  before Ironhide walked up to Optimus...

"This is worse. Prime! Make something of yourself!" He growled.

...and thumped him on the top of the cab.

"He's pissed" he said.

Optimus transformed and came down to Mearing's level, blowing an angry cycle through his vents.

"You lied to us. Everything humans know of our planet we were told had all been shared. So why was  _this_  found in human possession?" He asked.

He motioned to a piece of a long lost Cybertronian craft called The Ark. Mearing looked at it with a cool head, but before she spoke, Thera, who was still present, cut in.

"If either of my mates had been harmed during that mission, due to failure of truthful cooperation I would've had your head on a silver platter" she said.

Mearing turned to her and raised an eyebrow at how cool, calm and collected the Shifter femme's voice had been. She didn't notice the colour of the eyes was different.

"We were in the dark on this also. It was Director Only clearance at Sector Seven until now" she said.

She turned to her assistant.

"The bag" she said.

The assistant looked at all the bags and made a face.

"Which one?" She whispered.

Thera shook her head and walked over to where Ratchet was, before sitting on his foot. She knew that he was aware that she was present and not Alexx, but she figured that Ironhide had told him what had happened. She tuned out the rest of the conversation, not caring when Buzz Aldrin and and a couple of NASA officers came into the picture and she only perked up when Optimus was speaking about a mission to the moon.

"You be careful up there Optimus. If you get hurt, I'll kill you myself" she said.

Will would've laughed if the Shifter femme hadn't said that with such seriousness.


	33. Chapter 33

**(A Few Hours Later)**

A few hours went by and finally Optimus and Ratchet returned with another bot in tow. This bot was larger and was red and he had a metal beard. From where she was sat Alexx frowned at the sight of this new bot, the aura she got from him, even if he was inactive made Thera stand on edge and claw at her metaphorical cage.

"Ironhide!" She called.

The black mech came up to her and she nodded in the direction of the tall, red mech.

"Who is he?" She asked.

Ironhide smiled a little.

"That is Sentinel Prime, descendent of the dynasty of Primes and he was Optimus' mentor" he replied.

Alexx shivered and made a face.

"His aura suggests that he's not to be trusted. Thera doesn't like him" she stated.

Ironhide chuckled and shook his head, his mate was something else indeed. However, though he was chuckling the thought that Thera didn't trust or didn't like Sentinel had a small niggle of concern appearing in the back of his processor, but he ignored it. Alexx watched as Optimus brought the other large mech back to life with the matrix and as soon as the large red mech 'woke up', he attacked Optimus and Alexx jumped up onto the barrier, ready to beat the living shit out of the other large mech.

"Calm down Alexx, he means Optimus no harm" Ratchet said.

Alexx looked over at the medic and snarled, her eyes switching between colours as she looked back down to where Sentinel was now getting up off of her mate. Ironhide looked over to the medic and opened up an internal communications link with him.

_**:Ratchet, Alexx told me that Thera does not like Sentinel. She explained that something about his aura suggests that he cannot be trusted:** _

The medic looked at Ironhide and then looked at Alexx, watching exactly how she was acting and how jumpy she was with Sentinel around.

_**:That's natural Ironhide, Alexx and Thera are felines. She doesn't yet know Sentinel and until Optimus introduces them, it is natural for her to be distrusting of him:** _

Ironhide nodded and then cycled his intakes before he noticed that Optimus was motioning to Alexx. Sentinel turned towards the femme and Alexx felt a tingling sensation over her body and she growled.

"If you wanna keep your optics mate, I'd suggest you refrain from doing that... _ever_ " she said.

Optimus looked positively embarrassed by the way Alexx had just spoken to his ex-mentor and he was about to say something, but Sentinel held up his servo.

"Leave it Optimus. If what you have shared with me so far is correct, I believe I have to prove that I mean you no harm" he said.

Alexx still hissed and growled loudly at him.

"You can prove it to me all you like mech, your aura tells me a completely different story" she stated.

Sentinel smirked a little, this femme was a fiery one indeed. So she was a Shifter, the ones that Megatron had told him about, the beings that would be able to help restore Cybertron to its former glory. If this femme were to bear sparklings with the other Shifter that was like her, they would have an endless supply of Shifters to rebuild Cybertron many times over.

"We shall see young one" he said.

He then asked Optimus to take him out for a drive and he then left the base. Alexx caught Optimus and raised an eyebrow.

"If he hurts you, I'll feel it and I'll kill him" she said.

Optimus just gave her a look.

"We will talk later Alexx" he said.

It was clear that he wasn't very happy with her, but Alexx didn't care. She was extremely protective of her mates and if anyone or anything threatened them, she would react.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Decepticons)**

Megatron grinned to himself, Sentinel Prime was active again and finally Cybertron would be rebuilt with him at the head of it. And the sun of this planet would be taken and converted into Energon which would feed the sparklings and feed them too. Looking over at Starscream, the large Decepticon sneered slightly, perhaps the seeker would heed to be offlined befbefore he could rule Cybertron and of course Sentinel would be his right hand man. His optics were drawn to the floor when the human who they were teaming up with came through the door.

"Well?" Dylan asked.

Megatron growled and clenched his fist. He hated that he had to work with humans to get what he wanted, but he had been promised an entire army of slaves that would not tire...at least not as early as humans would.

"We have had no sightings of your precious femme human, however the Decepticons will have more luck once Sentinel can break free of the Autobot confines he is currently in" he replied.

Dylan nodded and gave a bit of a sigh. As much as he knew he couldn't rush the Decepticons to find Alexx, he also knew the ASTS needed Alexx to get the army of Shifters to get Cybertron built in half the time.

"When will Soundwave appear?" He asked.

Megatron growled again and glared down at the human.

"He will arrive when he arrives human. Now get out of my sight" he said.

Dylan nodded and walked out of the place where the Decepticons were staying for now. It didn't seem that they were any closer to finding Alexx, those Autobots covered their tracks well and there was a chance that they would never find the Abomination. So, the other Abomination has been put in with another Shifter female and so far things were going well. He wasn't so happy about what would happen once Alexx met with the male, she would kill him probably. Oh well, if they didn't find her, Dylan would have to make up an excuse as to why they can't find her.


	34. Chapter 34

**(Half an hour later)**

Alexx was pacing the floor, as much as she knew that Optimus was upset with her it didn't stop her from worrying about him. Thera really didn't like that Sentinel and she could understand it, the mech didn't exactly ooze friendliness like the other mechs did, in fact he oozed the same aura that the Decepticons oozed. It unsettled her as much as it unsettled Thera.

Suddenly, her heightened hearing picked up the sound of Sentinel's engine and she hurried outside to see that he had arrived at the base. She growled and went to walk forward, but she was caught from behind by someone and that made her growl louder and she began to struggle.

"Scream sweetheart, ain't no-one gonna hear ya" he said.

Alexx stopped struggling and her eyes shifted from hazel to jade green while she smirked.

"Oh I ain't gonna scream  _sweetheart_ , I'm gonna sing" she said.

She then elbowed him in the Solar plexus, stood on his foot, punched him in the nose and kneed him in the groin, sending him down to the floor winded and in a load of pain.

"That ain't singing you bitch" he wheezed.

Thera chuckled and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Yes it is. Solar plexus, Instep, Nose, Groin. S.I.N.G" she stated.

The man just groaned and rolled over onto his side, still clutching his family jewels. She looked over at Sentinel who was just parked there now and she was suspicious. Soon, Ironhide, Sideswipe, Will, Bumblebee and Sam came back to the base.

"We've got Decepticons everywhere" Sam said.

Lennox nodded and looked at the younger man.

"I've got my whole team deployed looking for them. Ironhide! Protect Sentinel, get him locked up inside!" He called.

Thera huffed.

"I don't see why we gotta protect that heap of scrap metal" she muttered.

Ironhide just gave her a look.

"Alexx, stop" he said.

He then looked at Will.

"Consider it done" he stated.

Sam then spoke up.

"Hey, you've gotta guard him, 'cause he's the key to the whole thing" he said.

Sentinel then transformed and Thera got a bad feeling in her gut. She looked around and thought and as Sentinel was speaking, she ran to a soldier and took his knife off of him.

"Hey!" He yelled.

Thera started to beat upon her stomach hard as Sentinel continued to speak.

"-What you must understand my Autobot brothers, is that we were never going to win this war. A deal had to be made, with  _Megatron_ " he said.

He then raised his weapon and prepared to fire at Ironhide, but Thera coughed up some green looking thick liquid and doused the knife in it, before she ran towards Sentinel and stabbed the thick liquid covered knife into Sentinel's exposed wiring, causing the mech to yell out in pain and fire his weapon off away from its target. This alerted everyone to what Sentinel was about to do and the other mechs aimed their weapons at the large mech.

"What did you do human?" Sentinel asked.

Thera came around and glared up at him, before growling.

"I poisoned you. Admittedly, it's not gonna be deadly to you like it would be to a human or a normal Shifter, but it'll leave a bit of a sting of a few hours. How  _dare_  you point a weapon at Ironhide, how  _dare_ you threaten one of my mates" she growled.

Sentinel growled back and looked at how the others were pointing their weapons at him. Outnumbered and outmatched, Sentinel transformed and drove off, leaving the mechs and the humans there to watch in shock and horror.

"I'm sorry Alexx" Ironhide said.

Thera turned around and glared at him.

"I'll let her know that you apologised mech, next time she tells you that I have a bad feeling about something, listen would ya?" She asked.

Ironhide looked at her and gave a single nod, as did the other mechs. They then heard crashing in the base and they hurried in there to see that Sentinel was crashing around. Meaning came in against what Will had said and tried to order Sentinel to tell her what he was doing.

"I'm a Prime, I don't answer to you!" He said.

Thera growled loudly.

"You don't  _deserve_  the title of  _Prime_  you traitor!" She yelled.

Sentinel snarled at her and continued to trash the place.

"Now give me what belongs to me!" He ordered.

He smashed his way into the vault and took the pillars that had come with him, before he left the base. When he was gone, Optimus returned and Mearing looked at him as he transformed.

"Yeah take a good look Optimus, this is all on you" she said.

He looked at Thera, who shrugged.

"Sorry Optimus, I'm inclined to agree with the bossy bitch. If you'd listened to Alexx when she told you that I had a bad feeling about that piece of scrap metal, then this wouldn't've happened" she said.

 _ **~Shifting**_   ** _Hearts~_**

**(Decepticons)**

Megatron and Starscream were in the memorial for Abraham Lincoln, where Megatron used his mace to destroy Abraham Lincoln and sat in his chair, while he and Starscream talked about Sentinel.

"Any word about this Shifter the humans want my lord?" Starscream asked.

Megatron looked at the seeker and growled slightly.

"Sentinel has informed me that Alexx is with the Autobots" he replied.

Starscream nodded and looked around. If things went the way they were hoping, Cybertronian would be up and running again in no time.

 _ **~Shifting**_   ** _Hearts~_**

**(ASTS)**

Clive sat in his office with a huge smile upon his face. His star abomination had just made another Shifter pregnant and soon more Shifters with strong genes would be born, ready to help him and these Decepticons to rebuild Cybertron and wipe the earth of the remaining Shifters. However, he wasn't happy that he hadn't received Alexx yet, but he knew that soon enough he would receive the abomination and then, then he would have a Shifter army that would not be able to be stopped by the poison that Alpha Shifters produced. They would be unbeatable.


	35. Chapter 35

As Optimus left the base in pursuit of Sentinel, he thought about what Thera had said and whether he wanted to admit it or not the Shifter femme was right. If he had indeed listened to Alexx when she had said that Thera had a bad feeling about Sentinel, then perhaps all of this could have been avoided and the recognition of this brought about the realisation that he owed his mate a sincere and heartfelt apology. However, he had the slightest feeling that just a simple verbal apology wouldn't be accepted by the femme, so as he followed the elder Prime, he quickly searched the Internet for ways to apologise to a femme and found that human males often used flowers and confectionary to help the apology be accepted. He made a quick note about that, before everything was forgotten as he found Sentinel setting up the pillars for the space bridge.

"Stop! No! No, no Sentinel!" He called.

The elder Prime didn't even look at him as he continued to set up the pillars.

"Forgive me" he said.

The space bridge opened and within minutes Decepticons of all shapes and sizes were coming through. Sentinel made a run for it, followed by Optimus who had just seen Bumblebee, Mirage, Ironhide, Jazz, Ratchet and the other Autobots turn up.

"Autobots retreat!" He called to them.

He then went after Sentinel, tackling him to the ground where they began to brawl with Sentinel getting the upper hand easily.

"Why Sentinel, why?!" Optimus asked.

Sentinel thrust his forearm against Optimus' face and growled a little.

"For Cybertron! For our home!" He replied.

He hit Optimus in the face with his forearm a few more times.

"What war destroyed, we can rebuild! But only if we join with the Decepticons and the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad" he continued.

Optimus' optics widened at the mention of the terrorist group that were after his mate and he pushed Sentinel away a little.

"No, it's not the only way" he said.

He attempted to stand up, only to be pushed down by Sentinel again.

"This is our home! We must defend the humans!" He said.

Sentinel looked into Optimus' optics and shook his helm.

"So lost you are Optimus" he said.

He then stood up and looked down at the younger Prime.

"On Cybrtron we were gods, and here they call us machines" he stated.

He then thrust his weapon into Optimus' face.

"Let the humans and Shifters serve us or perish" he said.

He then turned away and started to walk away.

"You're lucky I didn't kill you, in time you'll see" he said.

Optimus rose to one knee and looked at the larger mech.

"It's not over" he said.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobot Base)**

Meanwhile, Alexx was once again pacing the floor outside the base, with the Auobots missing, she was worried about all of her mates. Suddenly, the arms from earlier wrapped around her again and this time, before she could do anything her world went black.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Autobots)**

Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet arrived back at the base with the other Autobots in tow. As soon as they arrived, Optimus was scanning the area for any signs of Alexx, bu founds none and rage boiled up inside of him at the thought of the ASTS taking the Shifter Femme to attempt to breed her to help the Decepticons and Sentinel Prime to rebuild Cybertron.

"Autobots, the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad is in league with the Decepticons. We  _must_ find Alexx before they put their plans into action, or worse" he said.

Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet nodded and they all began to search around for any trace from Alexx or whoever had taken her.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(ASTS DC Base)**

Alexx woke up in a dark and damp cell, instantly she was aware that she wasn't alone and this time, instead of shrinking away in fear, she growled loudly.

"You again" she hissed.

The male stood there and smiled down at her, it was a rather maliscious smile and one that made her growl even louder.

"Don't even think about it. It's not going to happen" she stated.

The male chuckled and advanced on her, before coming to crouch in front of her.

"Oh I think it will, you see...they need us to help the aliens rebuild their home. And the boss wants to give them the best workers he can, so that's why I've been told to take you...by any means necessary. So...you have two choices my sweet, we can either do this the easy way, that is to say that you let me take you willingly, or we can do this the hard way, that is to say that I take you by force. Which is it?" He asked.

Alexx growled and her eyes turned from hazel to jade green and this time the change was so quick, if you blinked you would've missed it.

"I vote the hard way" she growled.

She then launched herself at the male and started to bite and claw at him. Unfortunately for him, his change was quite a bit slower and by the time his Shifter had taken over, Thera had done a considerable amount of damage to him. However, now with both Shifter sides in control, the fight continued and it seemed that Raj Gau had been able to take control of Thera and it also seemed that Thera was willing to submit to him. That is until he started to fiddle with his clothing and then Thera struck.

She pounced upon him once more, this time her claws raking over his eyes and effectively blinding him and causing him a great amount of pain. Then, she stood up and looked up at the camera that was in the room.

"Think you can force me to fuck some dude that isn't my mate do you Hangon? Well here's what I do to people who try to force themselves on me" she said.

She picked Raj up by his head and held him so that he was on his knees, before she twisted his head sharply to the side and a crack was heard, but she wasn't finished. After she'd broken his neck, she lifted him up by his hair and sank her teeth into his throat, clamping her jaw down either side of his windpipe before yanking him away with all her might, effectively pulling his trachea out with her mouth. Blood dripped from the male's throat as well as from her mouth as she spat the breathing tube out and as the door opened, she quickly and cleanly killed the two Shifters who entered and made a run for it.

The base here in Washington was a maze and for a while, Thera thought she was lost with the sound of the ASTS dogs gaining on her. But she kept running and eventually, she found the exit and hastily made her way out and up onto a car, though she knew that the dogs would lead the men right to her position, so she shifted into her jaguar form and began to make her way from car to car as quietly as she could until she gauged that she was far enough away to be able to jump down and run towards where she knew the Autobot base was. Hopefully the leader of the ASTS would heed her warning and they wouldn't be after her again.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(ASTS Clive's Office)**

Clive looked at the little screen with sweat running down his forehead and his skin was deathly pale. Never had he had a Shifter that was as stubborn as that Alexx, nor had he ever had a Shifter who was that good a fighter as Alexx and the fact that she and her Shifter side seemed to be on the same wavelength was a feat in itself. If he was honest, the very thought scared him and he swallowed thickly. He watched through the various computer screens and released a relieved breath when he saw that she wasn't headed in his direction.

Reaching over to the walkie talkie that was charging on his desk, he picked it up and pressed the button.

"This is Clive, leave that abomination. We'll have to give those Decepticons what we already have and the rest of the Shifters who will be born from normal Shifters and Alphas" he said.

The walkie talkie crackled and there was the sound of an affirmative from the search team and Clive pulled his hankie from his pocket and dabbed at his forehead.


	36. Chapter 36

Thera ran towards the base, but she kept looking behind her to make sure that the ASTS weren't following her. A while ago she'd noticed that she'd lost them and for that she was grateful, at least she wouldn't lead them to her mates. When she got to the base, she looked around and saw that they weren't there and she growled. Digging in her pocket, she pulled out her phone and dialled Will's number.

 ** _"Alexx?"_**  Will asked.

She growled a little and huffed.

"Try again soldier boy" she replied.

There was a sharp intake of breath before said breath was let out slowly.

 _ **"Thera** ,  **are**   **you**   **alright?"**  _He asked again.

Once again Thera growled and she raised her eyes to the sky.

"I'm fine, are the Autobots with you?" She questioned.

Will confirmed that they were with him and Thera nodded.

"Good, I need you all to come back to the base, I have something you all need to hear" she said.

Will said that they would be back as soon as they could be and Thera hung up. She could feel the blood around her face drying, but she didn't care about it, she hadn't even tried to wash it off. It wasn't that she was proud to wear the blood of another Shifter, even if he was a complete douche who was going to rape her if she was unwilling to give in to him, it was more the fact that she simply didn't think to wash it off. As she waited for her mechs and adoptive father to return, she started to pace up and down the road she was on, she was aware that she was making the soldiers quite nervous and it wasn't because of her pacing. In the end she growled and turned towards them.

"You boys got a problem?" She asked.

They shook their heads and she nodded before going back to her pacing while the soldiers looked on, desperately hoping that the Autobots would return soon and sort Thera out. Soon, their salvation arrived and as soon as the humans were out of the Autobots they transformed. After taking one look at the state Thera was in, Ratchet knelt down to her level and looked her over.

"Are you okay Thera?" He asked.

Thera looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"Why wouldn't I be?" She asked back.

Ratchet motioned to her face and she chanced a look into one of his headlights to see that she had blood all over her face. She shrugged and looked at the medic.

"Oh it's nothing, it's not even my blood. And yes, I did kill someone, but it was someone who absolutely deserved it" she said.

Ratchet looked at her and his optics showed disapproval and he went to say something before Optimus interjected.

"What is it that you need to speak with us about?" He asked.

He too clearly wasn't happy that she'd killed someone, but it seemed that he wasn't in the mood to deal with trivial things right now.

"The Anti-Shifter Terrirost Squad are in league with the Decepticons. Now this bit of information will both reveal to you the how and why I have blood on my face and reveal to you the information about the ASTS and the Decepticons" she replied.

The mechs all came down to her level to listen and she stood there and explained.

"I know that the ASTS are in league with the Decepticons, because prior to me ripping his throat out, the Shifter who was like myself and Alexx revealed to Alexx and myself the plan that they have. The ASTS plan to provide the Decepticons and Sentinel with an army of Shifters who are both Alphas and Omegas to help rebuild Cybertron. Though I'm not entirely sure how that'll work" she said.

Optimus nodded a little.

"Sentinel intends to bring Cybertron into Earth's atmosphere in order to rebuild it with the humans and Shifters becoming slaves and doing all the work" he said.

Thera nodded and then sighed.

"Now, the reason I ripped the guy's throat out was for two reasons. Reason one, the fucktard gave me a choice, I either mate with him willingly and provide a child for the ASTS or he takes me by force. Though how the ASTS expected me to give them a child I don't know..." She began.

Ratchet frowned a little.

"What makes you say that? My scans indicate that you are perfectly capable of bearing sparklings" he said.

Thera looked at him.

"Ninety nine point nine, nine percent of Shifter children born to first time Shifter mothers die within the first few hours of being born, courtesy of an inexperienced mother. Besides, the first born is always too weak to live, so even if a first time mother has all the help she can get, the likelihood of the child surviving is one in one thousand. And reason number two, was really to send Clive Hangon a message" she explained.

The mechs nodded, though they weren't really happy about what she had done, at least there was one less member of the ASTS to worry about.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(A few hours later)**

Sentinel had released a broadcast saying that he was the leader of the Autobots and that the humans were to exile the other Autobots off of the planet. It was safe to say that Alexx wasn't very happy about that, but there was nothing that she could do, especially since the government had decided to do what Sentinel had requested and exile the Autobots.

"I can't believe they're doing this. How dare they!" Alexx yelled.

Ironhide rubbed a finger down his mates back and smiled slightly.

"Don't ya worry femme. Prime has a plan" he sad.

Alexx looked at the mech and as he was about to open his mouth, she held her hand up.

"Don't tell me, that way if the ASTS capture me again and try to get me to tell them if you guys have a plan, I can tell the truth and say that I don't know" she said.

Ironhide nodded and Alexx watched as he transformed. When done, he opened his cab door and Alexx climbed in before the door shut and they were on their way to the place where the Xanthium was kept.

 ** _"Before we leave Alexx, myself and the others would like to apologise to you"_** Ironhide said.

Alexx looked at the dash and raised an eyebrow.

"What is it you need to be sorry about?" She asked.

Ironhide's speakers hissed in static as he cycled his intakes.

 _ **"**_ ** _We_** _**should**   **never**   **have**   **doubted**   **Thera. We should have understood that if Thera felt something was wrong, then something**   **was indeed wrong"**_ he replied.

Alexx smiled sadly.

"I understand. You all looked up to him and he was Optimus' mentor. So having someone who didn't know him an doesn't know hardly anything about the way he was on Cybertron, I guess it was more a case of you wanted to believe that he was still good" she said.

The cab rumbled in agreement as they all drove towards the shuttle. Soon they arrived and as soon as Alexx exited Ironhide's cab, the mech and the other mechs transformed. Ratchet, Jazz and Optimus all came over and they along with Ironhide all came down to her level.

"I apologise Alexx" Optimus said.

The a Shifter femme looked at him with tears in her eyes as she walked up to him and pressed her hand against his cheek.

"I know, I understand why you didn't believe me and I accept your apology. I accept  _all_ of your apologies. And I want you all to know, that no matter where you are...I will  _always_  love you" she said.

Optimus, Jazz and Ratchet all teared up at the sound of that and even Ironhide teared up at the sound of it. However, they all quelled it and Alexx pressed her lips to theirs before stepping back. Sam then came up to them and asked them what their plan was and Alexx growled, especially when Optimus said that there was no plan, though she didn't know what the plan was, she did know that they did indeed have a plan. When the Autobots boarded the Xanthium, Sam came up to her.

"I need to know their plan" he said.

Alexx just looked at him.

"Optimus wasn't lying Sam, you know he wouldn't lie to you. They're going to heed the government's wishes and they're going to leave Earth. But here's  _my_ plan. I am going to find each and every one of the humans that is involved with the Decepticons and each and every Shifter who is sent to Sentinel and his band of merry mechs and I am going to rip their throats out one by one, until I get to Clive and his right hand man. Then, I'm going to let Thera have her way with them, though I think I'd better put a cheese grater in some caustic acid first" she said.

Sam just gave her a look as if she'd been possessed by something and she just gave a smile.

"Oh nothing you need to worry your pretty little head about" she stated.

Sam nodded and they both watched as the Xanthium launched off into space.


	37. Chapter 37

As she watched the Xanthium rocket off, Alexx saw something in the corner of her eye and when she looked her eyes went wide. Starscream flew towards the ship at a terrifying speed and her mouth dropped open as the Decepticons second in command blew the ship up right before her eyes. Hazel orbs filled with water and she realised that she was numb, she was so numb that she was sure she couldn't even feel the pain of having her mates killed. No noise left her mouth as the tears began to roll down her face and her body began to shake. Soon though, the anguish began to turn to anger and her mouth closed her teeth beginning to grind together and her body began shaking much more violently.

She stood from her position and walked down the road, shoving out of the way anybody who tried to stop her, including Director Mearing.

"Get the fuck out of my way you pompous bitch" she hissed.

she quickly made her way over to Sam and grabbed him by his shirt, lifting him up high above her head and watching him squirm.

"What do you know boy?" She asked.

Sam started to splutter and she put him down, pulling her fist back and threatening to punch him.

"I said...what do you know!" She demanded.

Sam told her everything he knew, now that the Decepticon bug was off his wrist, he began to spill everything and he watched as this only made Alexx more and more angry. She saw the bug slithering away and dropped Sam, hurrying over to capture it, which caused it to squeal.

"Hello there Dylan, enjoy the little show did you? Well guess what, it's not over. In fact, this is just an intermission, the next act will be with your head on a golden platter on my wall. Do you understand me? You, Clive and  _everyone_ involved with the Anti Shifter Terrorist Squad, will all perish by my hand. I will becomes hat you want me to be Dylan, I will become thee monster you believe me to be and I will piss on your rotting corpse with the greatest pleasure" she said.

She then crushed the little Decepticon in her hand, not caring that it's jagged edges cut into her palm. She then turned towards Mearing and snarled when the woman went to say something.

"You say anything bitch and I'll rip your tongue out. Optimus and the others are't here to stop me now and I'm pissed" she said.

Turning around, she shifted right in front of everyone, earning gasps all around and she ran off in the direction she was sure the ASTS Chicago base was.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(ASTS)**

Dylan was in Clive's office playing him what Alexx had said into the little Decepticon bug. And it was safe to say that Clive was shit scared.

" _You, Clive and **everyone**  involved with the Anti Shifter Terrorist Squad, will all perish by my hand. I will becomes hat you want me to be Dylan, I will become the monster you believe me to be and I will piss on your rotting corpse with the greatest pleasure" _Alexx's voice said.

Clive swallowed and once again dabbed at his head with his hankie. He didn't like the sound of that and with the way she'd already killed his other abomination and now she was threatening...no she was _promising_ a painful death for everyone with the ASTS. He looked at Dylan and whimpered.

"She's already killed Raj Gau" he said.

Dylan looked at him and scoffed.

"She can't harm you, not with me and the Decepticons protecting you" he said.

Clive glared at him.

"Dylan, she killed Raj Gau right in front of me, just ripped his throat out as if she were taking a bite out of an apple" he said.

The younger and thinner man just gave him a look.

"She's strong, but she can't take the Decepticons on on her own. Not with those mates of hers gone" he said.

Clive scoffed.

"Dylan, I've been around these freaks all my life, enough to know that you should  _never_ underestimate them, any one of them" he said.

The other man just smiled.

"I guarantee she won't hurt you" he said.

He then walked out of the room and made his way towards Soundwave.

"We need to put a couple of guards on this base. There's an unfriendly on her way" he said.

Soundwave's holoform nodded and they drove off.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx)**

She hurried towards the Chicago base, stopping when she saw the two Decepticons standing guard outside. She didn't recognise them, they must've come through the space bridge that Sentinel set up. As she was about to attempt to sneak in, she heard a low growl and turned to see a tigress getting ready to pounce. Shifting back into her human form she looked over the tigress, knowing that it wasn't a wild one, then she shifted into her own tigress form, a majestic white Bengal tigress.

The other tigress then ran towards her, the intent was clear and she didn't take it laying down. She fought with the other tigress, the din was astonishing and enough to draw the Decepticons from their perch. Looking over the two tigers, they didn't know which one was the bogey, considering going they weren't told about any other Shifters. They watched the fight, intrigued and jeering when the White one gained an advantage over the Orange one.

Soon, the White tiger grabbed the Orange tiger's neck and twisted. A definite crack was heard and the Orange tiger fell to the ground dead. It then shifted into an older woman and the White tiger turned towards the Decepticons, who clapped their hands and moved out of the way. The White tiger stalked past them and by the time they realised that she was the one they needed to watch out for, it was two late. The two shifter guards inside were dead and she was on her way to Clive's office.


	38. Chapter 38

Clive shook in his seat as he watched the irate Shifter approach his office, each set of Shifter guards she encountered, she killed with relative ease and that caused him a fair amount of disease. For the last half hour, he had been contemplating all the escape routes he could take to get away from the Shifter femme that was quickly descending upon him, but he realised that no matter which one he took he would never be able to escape the woman.

The fact that one of these freaks could scare him almost angered him, he ruled these freaks he was Clive Hangon the leader of the Anti Shifter Terrorist Squad he should  _not_ be afraid of a Shifter. But the trembling of his hands, his sweaty skin and palms, elevated heartbeat, laboured breathing and pulsing bladder told him that he was in fact  _very_ afraid of what this Shifter could and would do to him. A few times he thought of just throwing caution to the wind and rushing out of the office to escape Alexx, but his fear rooted him to the spot.

"Shit" he hissed.

He stayed in his seat, sweat running down the side of his face, his eyes glued to the screen in front of him watching as the Shifter got closer and closer to his office. He swallowed once, his saliva thick as it squeezed down his throat, he swallowed twice this time the saliva was more watery, but his mouth was dry. As the Shifter got closer, he began to visibly tremble in his seat, how she got past the two Decepticon guards outside was a mystery to him, but...he didn't want to know what Alexx was going to do to him. Suddenly, his phone rang, he picked it up and swallowed.

"Yes?" He asked.

The guy on the other end seemed nervous.

 _"Uh boss...Mrs. Reade"_ he said.

Clive raised an eyebrow.

"What about her?" He questioned.

The guy swallowed and stuttered.

 _"Sh-She's dead"_ he replied.

Clive went white and he put the phone down. This woman had killed Mrs. Reade, the Shifter who had helped her to know who she was.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx)**

Alexx got to the office, a trail of corpses lay in her wake and her eyes wide with anger. She opened the door and expected to see the owner of the group sat there, but he wasn't there. She snarled and slammed the door behind her, walking into then omo she searched through drawers and on the computer, completely ransacking the place until she found what she wanted to find, the names of the people who worked for Clive. She singled one out and growled loudly,  _Dylan Gould_. Now why do she know that name? Oh yeah, Sam was the one who said it, Dylan was the one who attached the little device to Sam's wrist, Dylan was the one who was working with the Decepticons.

With another growl, Alexx made her way out of the office and inhaled deeply. She caught the scent of Clive and followed it through the base, she knew that he'd have guards with him and those guards would probably be Shifters, but if they were teaching the Shifters how to battle and how to be an army then they seemed to be doing a very poor job. If she could kill them easier than a hot knife slides through butter, then there was no hope of them ever being able to help the ASTS to take out the Shifters of the world.

She thought about her mates, something in the back of her mind was screaming at her that something was amiss here. There was no pain of the death of Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet and that same something was saying that Ironhide had told her that Optimus had a plan, she just didn't know what it had been. But with her being angry and bent on making not only Clive but Dylan pay for what they'd done to her, she wasn't listening to the rational part of her brain, she was listening to the revenge part, the part that Thera seemed to have made herself at home in.

When she finally reached a spot where Clive's scent was the strongest, she slowed down her advance and started to look around corners and quietly open doors to look inside. She wanted to find the fat bastard, not because she wanted to kill him, she had more important things to do than that right now. No, Dylan was her main target and if anyone knew where he was, Clive would.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Autobots)**

After the rocket dispatched the pod from the rear end and said rear end fell into the ocean, the Autibots opened the door and swam as far away from the coast as they could. Admittedly, the salt water wasn't doing their circuits a lot of good, but Megatron had been able to be revived after spending two Earth years in the Laurentian Abyss with only minor damage that his self repair systems could sort so they figured that they would be alright. As soon as they found a spot where the humans hadn't gathered to watch the rocket blast off, they climbed ashore and began the arduous task of hiding until the time was right. As they did, they thought of what had happened and Ironhide voiced what everyone was thinking.

"What about Alexx?" He asked.

Mirage looked at the black mech and nodded, looking towards the Prime.

"Si, the femme had no-a idea what you were-a planning. She-a probably thinks that we offlined" he said.

Optimus put his helm down and cycled his intakes. He was aware that Alexx would exact revenge on those humans who were working with the Decepticons and the ones working in the ASTS, but the plan was one that was needed.

"I am aware of what would be going through her processor Mirage, Ironhide, but you know as well as I do that this plan was needed to make the Decepticons show us their plan" he said.

Mirage and Ironhide nodded and they put their own plan into action.


	39. Chapter 39

Soon enough Alexx found where Clive was hiding, he was in a smaller office and he had two Shifter soldiers guarding the door. Taking them out would've been easy if not for the fact that these two soldiers were rather buff and together they could take her out as if she were nothing but a pesky fly. A low growl escaped her lips as she slinked back behind the corner she'd peered around and she closed her eyes, if she could find out which clan and family they were from then maybe she could use her alpha status against them. Maybe, just a little longer... _there!_ They were both from the Panthera family so they would react to the orders of an Alpha, that was one thing the ASTas would never be able to breed out of them. With a smirk on her lips, she stepped around the corner, instantly the two guards pointed their weapons at her and she growled the lowest growl she'd ever done.

"Stand down boys" she said.

The Shifters did as told, the low growl registering with their instincts and if there was one thing that Alexx knew about the ASTS, it as that they taught the Shifters to obey their instincts. With a maliscious smile upon her face, the Shifter femme stepped through the door and came face to face with the fat form of Clive Hangon.

"Nice place" she said.

Clive jumped in his seat and looked at her, before quickly reaching for a gun that was in his drawer, but Alexx was faster and she jumped onto the desk thus preventing him from acquiring the weapon.

"H-how did you get in here?" He asked.

Alexx smirked at him.

"Yiu really shouldn't teach your Shifter army to obey their instincts" she replied.

Clive moved back and Alexx jumped off of the desk and walked towards him, almost smiling at the way he was whimpering.

"Oh relax Clive, I'm not going to kill you" she said.

Clive looked at her.

"Y-you're not?" He asked.

Alexx shook her head.

"Not if you tell me where Dylan is" she replied.

Clive quickly spilled the beans on the whereabouts of his second in command and Alexx smirked. She tapped him on the face a couple of times and then walked out of the door.

"Oh and Clive?" She asked.

The portly man looked up at her and she smiled a sickly sweet smile.

"I'm going to need an escort to the front door. Don't want any of your other Shifter family guards trying to kill me" she said.

Clive told the two guards that were guarding his door to escort her out and that's what they did. With another smile, she thanked them, shifted and then ran towards where Dylan was.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Trump Tower Lower Penthouse/Dylan Gould)**

Dylan watched as Megatron drove up to the Trump Tower. Sentinel landed on the top a few minutes later and he looked at the human.

"Do you have what we require?" He asked.

Dylan nodded.

"Though there has been a slight problem with getting the abomination Shifters. The female abomination...uh...I believe you know her as Alexx. She killed our other Abomination Shifter and has since killed quite a few others including Mrs. Norma Reade" he explained.

Sentinel clenched his fist and ground his dentas.

"That femme has become a liability. I want her found" he said.

Dylan nodded and was about to say something when his phone rang. He answered it and then a huge smile appeared on his face, before he put the phone down.

"It seems we won't have to look too far for Alexx, she'd headed right here" he stated.

Sentinel got a look in his optics and he smirked.

"Excellent" he said.

Dylan and Carly talked for a bit, before Megatron interrupted.

"Be gone insect operative. Your work is done" he said.

Dylan nodded.

"Your excellency" he stated.

He then grabbed Carly.

"He's such a dick" he whispered.

When Dylan and Carly had gone, Sentinel looked at the Decepticons leader.

"It's time for the Shifters of Earth to recognise their masters. Seal off the city" he said.

Megatron nodded and the ships begs to fire at the buildings and everything.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx)**

She hissed as the Cybertronian ships started blasting at the buildings and continued to run through the mass of people who were screaming and running around. Not only were they afraid of what was happening, but many of them were also screaming because a large black panther was running through the city. Soon she saw a group of people by a convoy of vehicles and she recognised two of them, so she ran up t the first vehicle, jumped on the tailgate and climbed over it beforeoing the the same to the second one and then landing on the third one, a muscle car. She roared a little and they turned around.

"Whoa shit! Where'd that come from?" One man asked.

Epps put his hand up and looked at the man.

"Relax brother, she ain't gonna hurt you" he said.

Alexx then Shifted, which once again left the man who was shocked earlier, shocked again.

"What're you doing here?" She asked.

Epps looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

"Could ask you the same question" he replied.

Alexx smirked.

"I'mma find Dylan, so I can gut him for what he did to the Autobots" she said.

Epps nodded and then Alexx looked at Sam.

"The dick got your girl huh?" She asked.

Sam gave her a questioning look and she shook her head.

"Never mind, let's go" she said.

The group went towards a building, or rather what was left of one and Epps climbed up the side to look out the window.

"My god" he said.

The men looked at the mess from the ground and each seemed equally as shocked.

"We came here to find her in the middle of all that?" One asked.

The tall good looking man looked up at Epps.

"Are we really going out there Epps?" He asked.

The portly man just looked at the mess and shook his head.

"I'm not going in there" he said.

Epps shook his head.

"No-one's going in there" he said.

Sam and Alexx looked at each other and then Alexx stepped forward.

"We are" she said.

Sam nodded.

"With or without your help, I'm gonna find Carly" he stated.

Epps looked at them as they'd walked off.

"You're gonna get yourselves killed Sam, Alexx...is that what you want?" He asked.

He ran down the rubble.

"Is that what you want?" He asked again.

He caught up with them and turned them both around.

"You both came all the way out here to get yourselves killed?" He questioned.

Sam looked at him.

"She's here because of me, do you understand?" He asked back.

Alexx looked at Sam and then at Epps.

"I got a score to settle, and I ain't being no-ones slave" she stated.

Epps rolled his eyes.

"Listen, if you go in this building, that's  _if_ they're still alive, there's no way you're gonna be able to reach them!" He exclaimed.

Alexx looked at him and then sighed.

"We gotta try Epps" she said.

Then one too the men yelled.

"Whoa! Incoming!" He yelled.

Alexx and Sam turned around to see one of the Cybertronian ships coming towards them and shooting at them. They ran and hid under a derailed train.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Autobots)**

They arrived in the city and saw what had happened. Then Optimus saw the ship that was attacking the humans and his optics picked up the sight of Alexx running with said humans that were being attacked. He narrowed his optics and shot at the ship until it crashed, then he shot the pilot and walked up behind the humans.

"We will kill them all" he said.

He looked down to see Alexx looking up at him with shock and awe on her face, but now wasn't the time to get all emotional, they had work to do. The wreckers then came up behind him and started to attack the decepticon in the fallen ship, as Optimus looked down to Sam and Epps.

"Your leaders will now understand, Decepticons will never leave your planet alone and we needed them to believe we had gone. For today in the name of freedom, we take the battle to them!" He said.

Alexx looked up at him and Optimus watched as her face lit up when she saw Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet coming towards them and he felt his spark melt at the sight of the tears in her eyes as she saw them all.

"I saw your ship blow up" Sam said.

Leadfoot was the one to answer, his Scottish accent cutting through the silence.

"The ship? We were never in the ship! We designed the damn thing didn't we?" He asked.

Then another of the wreckers spoke.

"We were hidden in the first booster rocket to separate. Splashed down back in the Atlantic just as planned" he said.

He then spat out a bit of metal.

"We ain't going nowhere" he finished.

Alexx looked up at the Prime and growled.

"That was your plan all along? To make them...to make  _me_ believe that you died?" She asked.

Optimus looked down at her and his optics softened.

"We needed to make your leaders believe that we had gone, so that we could find out what plan the Decepticons had and stop it" he replied.

Alexx growled and stood forward.

"Do you know how many people I killed to get where I am now? How many necks of my Shifter brethren I felt snap between my hands to get here?" She asked.

She then smiled malisciously.

"I enjoyed every minute of it, and I'll enjoy killing Dylan Gould when I get my hands on him too" she said.

Her eyes flashed and Optimus didn't bat an optic covering at the look of malice in her eyes. If they were to get through this, they would need Thera.

"They're surrounding the city to make a fortress so that no one can see what they're up to inside. Our only chance is the element of surprise" he said.

Sam looked up at the big mech and Alexx could see the metaphorical cogs turning in his head.

"I think I know where to look" he said.

He then went over to the downed Cybertronian ship and called Bumblebee over.

"So you can fly this thing right?" He asked.

Bumblebee shrugged and made a side to side motion with his hand in a so-so motion.

"What is that...What is that? What is that? So-so?" Sam asked.

Bee shrugged again.

"So you so-so can fly this. That feels terrible" he said.

Epps then gave him a gun.

"We're right behind you" he said.

Sam took the gun and then Epps looked at everyone else.

"All right, we're going in" he said.

Bumblebee then powered up the ship and took off with Sam, while Epps set out the plan of attack. Alexx listened closely.

"Well, I won't get too far using my Shifter form. It's gonna look pretty suspicious with a Bengal tiger, a white Bengal tiger, a Sumatran tiger, a Siberian tiger, a Barbary lion, a White lion, a Melanistic jaguar, a normal jaguar, a leopard, a snow leopard or a clouded leopard running through Chicago" she said.

Epps just looked at her.

"You can shift into all those big cats?" He asked.

Alexx nodded.

"I can shift into any member of the Panthera family of cats" she said.

Epps nodded and then one of the other men cleared his throat to get Epps back on task. Alexx listened to the rest of the plan and nodded. They then followed the ship Bumblebee was in and when it crashed, they walked over to it and Carly, Sam and Epps talked into the camera and told the people on the other side about the pillars. Optimus then came up to them and looked down at them.

"We need to move before the fighters spot us. Wait here until we scout a route ahead" he said.

Alexx growled.

"Like hell I'm gonna wait here! I already lost you guys once, I'm not gonna do it again" she said.

Optimus looked at her.

"We're not going anywhere Alexx" he said.

She looked at him and huffed. There was no reason that he'd lie to her, so she just let it go.

"Fine" she said.

Optimus then walked in front.

"Let's roll" he said.

Sideswipe looked back at Ratchet.

"Ratchet, cover high" he said.

The medic nodded and Alexx looked over at him.

"Be careful" she said.

She went in Optimus' cab as he transformed and he activated his holoform as soon as she was in there. She looked at him and punched him around the face, which made him give her a funny look.

"What was that for?" He asked.

Alexx growled.

"For making me believe that you had died" she said.

She then crawled into his lap and kissed him hard.

"And that's for not dying" she whispered.

She gave a bit of a scream when the drill bot took Optimus' trailer away and Optimus just kept going, while holding onto her.

"It's alright" he said.

They then entered a large and abandoned building, Alexx got out and hurried over to Ironhide, who activated his holoform and she did the same to him as she had done to Optimus, then she went over to Jazz and did the same again and then she went over to Ratchet and she punched him harder than she punched the rest.

"Why do I get punched harder?" He asked.

Alexx glared at him.

"Because I felt like it!" She yelled.

She then kissed him just as hard as she had kissed the others. The guys with Epps looked on in surprise at how she was with the mechs, not to mention the fact that she was kissing four of them.

"That is one scary ass Decepticon" Epps said.

Optimus looked around.

"They got my trailer. I need that flight tech" he said.

He then primed his weapon.

"Shockwave can't hunt all of us at once. Wreckers, we need a diversion" he said.

The wreckers nodded and went to plan the diversion.


	40. Chapter 40

The Wreckers quickly came up with a diversion tactic that involved everyone, Ironhide, Jazz and Ratchet went out with them and started to fire at the Decepticons that were searching for them, while the humans and Alexx headed towards a building made of glass. Alexx managed to easily keep up with them and she could vaguely hear Carly and Sam speaking, she turned to them and glared.

"You guys wanna get us caught, you keep talking. You came all the way out here Sam to rescue her, don't blow it now" she said.

Sam looked at her and nodded and when Alexx turned around, she heard Carly asking who she was and Sam respond with 'a good friend'. The thought of Sam seeing her as a friend, as annoying as he was, had her smiling slightly internally. Soon they got into the building.

"Go for the stairs" Epps said.

Sam ran ahead and found the stairs.

"Epps, this way!" He called.

Everyone followed Sam until they reached a floor where they could easily see the control pillar that Sentinel was going to use to open the space bridge. Alexx chuckled a little as the portly guy and Epps shared a few words and then they reached a window.

"Set up the rocket" Epps said.

The portly man did as told and Sam dragged Carly over to one of the windows and showed him where the control pillar was. Suddenly the building started creaking and moving and Alexx got down onto all fours so that she could have extra balance.

"They're shooting at the building" one of the guys said.

The portly man looked down and shook his head.

"This is not a good idea" he said.

Sam looked at him.

"What?" He asked.

The man repeated what he said and then said that the building was unstable and Sam ran over to him and told him that if they didn't do what they came here to do then it wouldn't matter, because they'd all die anyway **.**  All of a sudden the building started moving again.

"The building's going over, take cover!" Everyone yelled.

Alexx pressed herself against one of the pillars in the building, knowing that when it was at a horizontal base, she would be able to balance easily enough.

"Why the fuck have they got to be so damned idiotic?" She asked herself.

Carly then pointed out that a couple of ships were coming and Epps told everyone to hide as a Decepticon came into the building. The podgy man rolled a chair down an aisle catching the Decepticon's attention and Epps threw a grenade which exploded in their faces.

"Run!" He yelled.

The group ran towards the other side and shot out the windows before jumping out of them and landing on the downwards sloping windows. They started to slide down them at a rapid speed.

"Sam I can't stop" Carly called.

Epps said to shoot the glass, so the ones who had guns all shot at the glass and they fell into the now open windows and back into the building, where they rolled and slid down the building from the inside. Alexx caught onto a wire and then caught the man who was just about to slide out of the window.

"Well that was a lot of excitement for one day" she said.

The man nodded and looked up at her, thanking her as she pulled him up. Unfortunately though, the desk and paper and chairs that had fallen out of the window landed on Shockwave, who looked up.

"Oh shit" Alexx said.

Epps looked down from where he was sat and saw Shockwave looking up at him.

"This evil thing's looking up at me!" He yelled.

Sam, who was still holding the wire and Carly looked down at him.

"What?" He asked.

Alexx then froze and the man she had saved just looked at her.

"What's up?" He asked.

She looked at him and smiled a grim smile.

"This ain't gonna be good" she said.

She then looked out of the window and saw that the drill-bot was back.

"Aww shit, did he  _have_ to call  _that_ fugly thing?" She muttered.

Then Epps almost echoed her statement.

"It's even got an uglier Decepticon with it!" He yelled.

He then scrambled back off the window ledge.

"We have to evac!" He yelled again.

Alexx helped the man she'd saved onto his feet and then pushed him upwards.

"Go!" She shouted.

The drill-bot made a loud screeching noise and then thrust itself right into the building. One of the guys with Epps came running up the building saying that the stairs were blocked and that they were trapped.

"Why do the Decepticons always get the good shit?" Epps asked.

Alexx looked at him.

"Because they're evil?" She asked back.

Epps just looked at her and she shrugged. The Drill-bot then wound itself in and out of the building and started to constrict like a snake, breaking the building and making the bit that was already at an angle fall until it was completely horizontal. Even Alexx screamed at this and put her hands out for anything she could catch onto to save herself and hopefully a few others. Sam and the big bald guy helped Carly get onto the fire escape and Alexx then got over there herself.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobots)**

Optimus managed to get his flight tech and had put it on, now he was headed towards the building the humans had said they were going to. He saw what the drill-bot had done and inwardly growled, he cared about the humans yes, but his mate was in there and the urge to protect her overrode the urge to protect the other humans. He flew straight towards the building.

"I'm coming for you!" He yelled.

He started shooting at the Drill-bot, pouring everything he had into his weapons. He flew up to the top of the horizontal part of the building, blew a hole in the surface and flew down through that hole to disable the Drill-bot. That made Shockwave angry and Optimus landed on a crane, though Alexx was still in danger at least she wouldn't be killed by a Decepticon. Yes the urge to protect her was still there, but he also had to save himself too. After trying to avoid one of Shockwave's missiles, he was hit and landed in a load of crane wire, which he couldn't escape from.

"Optimus!" Leadfoot called.

Optimus looked down at the city below.

"Wreckers!" He called back.

The Wreckers ran along the street.

"We're comin'" Leadfoot said.

Optimus hung there as he watched Alexx and the other humans get down to solid ground and he cycled his intakes in relief. His mate was safe.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Normal)**

They made it to the floor and were on their way towards the domed building with the control pillar when they were fired upon. Epps and his group went into a building while Sam, Carly and Alexx ran forward.

"We'll go this way" Sam said.

They used a school bus for cover as another ship went by. Then Starscream landed behind the bus.

"What a treat! You and me, alone" he said.

Alexx growled and Sam and Carly backed up a little.

"Carly!" Sam yelled.

Starscream them flipped the bus over and Alexx, Sam and Carly ran off to the side.

"Damn that one reminds me of Golem" Alexx said.

Then the three of them went and hid under the upside down hood of the bus.

"Okay, he's after me not you two" he said.

Sam and Carly then got inside the bus to hide from Starscream, but Alexx stayed under the hood. She did however run when the Decepticon second in command started to cut the bus open to find Sam. She met with Sam and Carly at the end of the bus.

"Sam, you take Carly and run, give me those boom sticks that Que gave you" she said.

The boy looked at her and shook his head.

"No, we're in this together" he said.

Alexx growled.

"Yeah and you have Carly, now go!" She yelled.

Sam shook his head again.

"I'm not gonna leave you, I owe you for saving my parents" he stated.

They ran and Starscream followed, Carly and Alexx made it behind a wall, but Sam hid behind a dumpster, which Starscream squashed without a problem.

"I thought you were working for us, boy?" Starscream asked.

Alexx growled from where she was with Carly, making the latter give her a funny look considering the growl was very animalistic. Sam went into his bag and pulled out the grappling glove, he slipped it on and fired upwards. The hook landed in Starscream's right eye, making him scream.

"Ahhh, my eye!" He screamed.

The next thing Alexx heard was Sam screaming and she snorted.

"Clever Sam, fire the damned grappling glove and don't let it go afterwards" she muttered.

She got up to watch as Starscream flailed about with Sam hanging from his eye and she saw Will going up to them.

"Target the Decepticon!" He yelled to his team.

Alexx grinned as she watched the team work. Will ran over to where Carly and Alexx were and Carly was screaming.

"Please, you got to save Sam!" She screamed.

Will crouched down between Carly and Alexx.

"What is he doing?" He asked.

Alexx filled him in.

"He fired a grappling glove that he got from Que, only the dope forgot to get it off his arm before Starscream could do what he's doing now" she said.

Will nodded and Alexx stood up and watched as Sam got one of the boom sticks.

"Finally, he's using his head" she said.

She watched as Starscream swung him upwards and then Sam stuck the boom stick into Starscream's left eye, causing the Decepticon to start yelling in a panic.

"I can't see, I can't see!" He yelled.

Sam swung down to them and Will caught him, the only problem was, Starscream crawled along the ground pulling them both along before Will could get the knife out of its holder.

"We've only got twenty seconds on that bomb" Sam yelled.

Will looked up at him while fumbling with the knife.

"What bomb?" He asked.

Sam pointed it out and then Starscream climbed a building.

"I'm gonna kick you" he said.

Alexx snorted.

"Yes Starscream, tell someone what you're gonna do before doing it, excellent battle play" she said.

Starscream then flew up in the air and landed on a parking lot building and as Will cut the cord the boom stick blew Starscream's head off. Bumblebee then came along, transformed, caught the two falling humans and then transformed and drove backwards with both on his hood as Starscream's body fell to the floor.

"That was fun" Alexx said.

Sam and Will looked at her and nodded, before getting up and Will pulled Alexx into a hug.


	41. Chapter 41

After what happened with Starscream, Alexx, Sam, Carly and Will headed towards where the control pillar was located.

"We got to get across the river, you see that? She said that the control pillar was in the first cupola" Sam said.

However, it seemed that Dylan had told the Decepticons that the Autobots were still alive and the bridges had been raised.

"Great, now how do we get across there?" Alexx asked.

Will looked around and wiped his brow, he didn't know himself.

"Alright, how do we get these bridges down? Spread out, check in there" he said.

Everyone checked, even Alexx went in and checked before she heard Will call Epps' name and she came out.

"Retirement is whack. Even worse, we can't get across the river to that building and the Autobits are upstairs, surrounded" he said.

Alexx's ears pricked at that and she growled.

"We need to get across that river... _now_ " she said.

Will looked over to one of his men and pointed at him.

"You, try and get into the bridge control room" he said.

The soldier nodded and went to do as he was instructed, before a NEST soldier came up to him.

"Sir, SEALS are here" he said.

Lennox smiled and looked over at the guys in scuba suits that were just climbing out of the water.

"It's a good day boys! What do you got?" He asked.

The SEAL captain explained that they had a ten-man SEAL unit tasked with vectoring tomahawks and that they'd be there in fifteen minutes. Will then explained what was going to happen to the team they'd suddenly put together and told the snipers to shoot for the Decepticon's eyes. Just then, Epps shouted about something.

"The bridge is coming down! Someone's looking over us!" He yelled.

Alexx smiled and as soon as the bridge was down, she ran over it and began to search for her mates. Will and the others were right behind her as she ran.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobots)**

Mirage, Jazz, Ironhide, Ratchet, Sideswipe, Que and Bumblebee were surrounded by Decepticons, Ratchet kept trying to get away, but the Decepticons were manhandling him.

"Get off me!" He yelled.

The Decepticon that was manhandling him simply pushed him over and he fell onto his aft. He looked around, he didn't spot Alexx anywhere, which he was glad about. He knew that if she'd seen this she would've run into the fray and not given a second thought about her own life and he didn't want her to die, even if he did. Just then Dylan came up to Soundwave and Ratchet heard him talking to him.

"Prisoners? You're keeping prisoners?" Dylan asked.

Soundwave nodded.

"You need to teach them about respect. This was all business, but now it's personal, do you understand?" Dylan asked.

Soundwave chuckled and nodded.

"I understand. No prisoners, only trophies" he said.

Que looked at Bumblebee, who chirped.

"Bee? I think they're going to kill us" he said.

Bumblebee chirped sadly and then jumped as Barricade pointed to Que and said that his time was up. Que tried to barter with Barricade, but the Decepticon scout was having none of it, he took Que away from the others and made him kneel facing away from him before he shot him in the head and laughed. Soundwave then got Bumblebee and chuckled again.

"You're mine now" he said.

Bumblebee chirped angrily and told Soundwave to get off of him, but Soundwave did the same as Barricade, only for a Cybertronian ship to come crashing down towards them. Soundwave looked up at it.

"No! No!" He yelled.

The ship landed on him and took him out. Bumblebee got up and then saw a load of humans coming down from a building. But then, the Decepticons optics were shot out as the NEST soldiers attacked the best they could with their weapons.

"Autobots attack!" Jazz called.

The Autobots did as their second in command ordered and Ratchet pointed to the bridge.

"Mortar that bridge!" He called.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Alexx)**

Alexx arrived at the place where the Autobots were being held hostage at the same time as Optimus did and smirked as Optimus helped finish off the Decepticons. He then went after Soundwave and as he was doing this, Alexx went after Dylan who was trying to get away from the fighting Cybertronians.

"Where do you think  _you're_  going?" She asked.

Dylan turned around and held his hands up.

"Now Alexx, I wanted no part in what the ASTS were doing to you. Clive just..." He began.

Alexx snarled as he said this.

"Clive just  _what_?" She asked.

Dylan licked his lips and swallowed.

"He offered me a load of money to get you" he replied.

Alexx barked a laugh and tilted her head.

"Always about the money with pricks like you. Too bad Clive lied to you and he wasn't going to give you a dime" she said.

Dylan looked down and nodded. It looked as if he were about to submit to Alexx, before he threw a punch towards her. She dodged it and smirked.

"Now  _that's_  more like it" she said.

She returned the assault and cackled as Dylan tried to run from her.

"Purrrfect, a game of cat and mouse. It's only fitting seeing as I'm a cat and you're  _so_  much lower than a mouse" she said.

Dylan continued to run, though he knew he couldn't outrun her, he thought he'd be able to outsmart her though. It was just too bad that he didn't know exactly how smart Alexx was compared to him and where he hid, Alexx found him with incredible ease.

"Boo!" She exclaimed.

Dylan jumped and backed away from her, he tried pleading and begging and praying for his life, but Alexx wasn't having any of it. She continued to pursue him until she got to where the Autobots had been kept hostage.

"Don't try it" she said.

Dylan just swallowed. However, it seemed that luck was on his side, as one of the Decepticon ships came roaring towards them.


	42. Chapter 42

Dylan jumped and ducked away from the Cybertronain ship and Alexx watched as it landed on a few of the Decepticons. She smirked a little and walked over to Dylan, picking him up by the scruff of his collar and making him look at her. Her grin widened as she looked into his eyes.

"You're mine now Dylan Gould" she said.

Dylan whimpered a little and stood there in her grasp. However, Soundwave noticed this and while he was being attacked by Optimus, he fired his weapon towards Alexx, who now dropped Dylan and dived out of the way. She rolled as she hit the floor and looked at Soundwave growling as she did. She hated that mech, but then again she hated all Decepticons. She went to stand up to retrieve Dylan, but then she heard something that made her look up and what she saw in the sky made her gasp.

"Yeah, that's Cybertron, that's what your Shifter brethren will be working on until the day they die and then their offspring will take their place and so on" Dylan said.

Growling, Alexx looked at the man and pounced, knocking him down to the ground.

"No it won't. I won't let that happen, the  _Autobots_  won't let that happen" she hissed.

Dylan laughed from under her and shook his head.

"You can't stop it Alexx, Sentinel Prime is bigger than you and stronger than you" he said.

Now it was Alexx's turn to laugh. though she knew that it probably wouldn't have worked, her only chance to get one over on Dylan was to perhaps lie to him.

"Actually, he's been poisoned. True enough it was only a small amount of poison, but it would've been enough to kill a fully grown bull Tyrannosaurus Rex. Right now the poison is working its way through his energon system, eating away at whatever it can" she said.

Dylan looked up at her and the fear in his eyes almost made her laugh... _almost_. She grinned down at him and then leaned her head down so that her mouth was next to his ear.

"I always have an ace in the hole. You however, you've been dealt out, you lose" she whispered.

She then pulled her fist back and delivered a hard punch to his face, knocking him out. She then got up and ran to find her mates and Sam.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Autobots)**

Sam looked up into the sky and saw Cybertron, he gasped and turned around on the spot. Ratchet looked at him and then looked up to where he was looking and narrowed his optics. If they weren't careful, Cybertron would knock Earth off it's axis and cause major disaster all across the planet. Just then Optimus came flying in and then landed on the ground, he killed Soundwave and then blew up the cupola that held the control pillar.

"Get down here Sentinel!" He yelled.

The Autobot traitor activated his weapons and looked down at Optimus.

"Optimus, you forget your place" he said.

He then jumped off the side of the building and used his large sword to slow his descent, before he dropped to the ground and got ready to engage Optimus in battle.

"I bring Cybertron, your home, and still you choose humanity" he said.

Optimus also got himself to engage in battle.

"You were the one who taught me freedom is everyone's right" he said.

He then yelled and ran towards Sentinel, hitting him in the head and then punching him in the shoulder and pushing him into a building.

"I will retrigger that pillar" Sentinel said.

Optimus continued to beat on him, knowing that if he let such a thing happen, the life of his mate would be all but over.

"Then you'll have to go through me!" He yelled.

Sentinel blocked the next attack and kicked Optimus away, making the blue and red mech fall onto his aft.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx)**

Alexx watched as Sentinel and Optimus fought, it was clear that her poison hadn't actually done anything to hurt the large mech, heck it hadn't even slowed him down a little. She sighed as she watched and wished that she could help in some way, but she knew that she couldn't, she could only watch as the two mechs traded blows. She heard Sam say about going to the pillar and she nodded.

"Here" she said.

She then shifted into her panther form and nodded to him. Sam gave her a bit of a strange look before he climbed onto her back and she looked at him, telling him to hold on. Obviously he didn't get the message until she started running and then he gripped on for dear life as she ran, ducked, weaved and jumped over cars. In no time they were near to where the pillar was and she stopped to let him off. Once he was off, she shifted back and ran with him towards the pillar, flanked by Will and the other Autobots.

"Lets do this" she said.

Sam nodded and they ran, when Alexx saw Dylan running for the pillar she growled and ran faster. She was up the steps in a matter of minutes and she tackled him to the ground.

"Hello my prey" she hissed.

Dylan grunted and gasped and they began to fight while Sam went for the pillar. Dylan hit Alexx a couple of times in the face, causing a split lip and a cut on her eyebrow, but her punches to him did a lot more damage. She punched him in the ribs once, effectively cracking a few, she punched him in the ribs twice, breaking the cracked ones and then as he went to punch her again she caught his arm and brought the back of his elbow down across her knee so hard that his elbow went in the wrong way. He screamed loudly and then she punched him in the face a few more times, chipping teeth, breaking bones and knocking teeth out.

Sam however didn't manage to get to the pillar in time before the Decepticons reactivated it and Alexx had an idea. Manoeuvring Dylan backwards, she continued to punch and kick him until he was in just the right position, then she delivered a hard and well placed kick to his chest to send him careening backwards into the pillar, effectively electrocuting him and killing him. Now she turned back to the battle between Optimus and Sentinel, noticing that the humans had some pretty good firepower, one of the humans fired a rocket launcher and it hit Sentinel square on, though it didn't do much damage.

The fight was then taken to the bridge and Alexx followed, listening to what Sentinel was saying.

"Always the bravest of us, but you could never make the hard decisions. Our planet will survive thanks to the Shifters of this planet" he said.

Optimus punched Sentinel as he said this, images of his mate being forced into slavery by this mech fueling his anger.

"No!" He said.

Optimus and Sentinel continued to fight on the bridge, with Sentinel effectively ripping Optimus' arm off. Alexx gasped as this happened, but she knew that Ratchet would be able to fix it, the wonderful medic he was. Just then something strange happened, Megatron came onto the bridge and started to attack Sentinel with Optimus. He asked for a truce, that all he wanted was to be back in charge, but Optimus didn't want this truce and he and Megatron started to fight, though it wasn't much of a fight. Optimus got Megatron on his knees with a few hits and then ripped his head off, before walking over to Sentinel.

"Optimus, all I ever wanted was the survival of our race. You must see why I had to betray you" he said.

Alexx then stepped in.

"You didn't  _have_  to betray anyone Sentinel, it was purely your choice. You chose to betray the Autobots and side with the Decepticons, you did. Nobody told you to do it Sentinel, you did it of your own free will, so don't try giving a sob story, it won't save your life" she said.

Optimus looked down at her and smiled, his spark thrummed happily in his chest as he heard her speak the words of a warrior. He then charged the weapon he had picked up and pointed it at Sentinel's head.

"While Alexx is correct, you didn't betray me...you betrayed yourself" he said.

Sentinel then realised what was about to happen and got scared.

"No Optimus!" He yelled.

He tried to scramble away, but Optimus shot at him and he flipped over with his head through one of the holes in the bridge. Optimus followed him and then shot him again, killing him. Alexx smiled and ran up to Optimus, climbing up his leg and pressing her fleshy lips to his.

"Thank Primus. You did good Optimus" she said.

Optimus brought his remaining hand up and carefully stroked her back with one finger, his optics lighting up with pure love and admiration. Then Ratchet, Ironhide, Jazz, Mirage, Leadfoot, Sideswipe and the other Autobots along with Sam, Carly, Will, Epps, the other humans and Bumblebee came onto the bridge. Alexx skilfully climbed down Optimus and went to each of her mates, kissing them and hugging them as best she could. She laughed when Bumblebee started playing the wedding march and released lots of cogs and rings from his subspace. Maybe things would be alright after all.


	43. Chapter 43

**(One Year Later)**

A year had passed since the battle in Chicago and it was clear that some of the humans were beginning to fear the Autobots again. A small group had formed protesting to get the Autobots off the planet and where most of the time their protests were ignored by the rest of the people, the message they were attempting to sent was coming through loud and clear to the Autobots. Optimus and Alexx were currently in a shaded area outside of the base, his real form was leaning against the wall, his optics cast down as his servo worked up and down his engorged spike and his holoform was also leaning against the wall, head thrown back in pleasure as Alexx's head worked on his spike.

It wasn't long until the big mech found himself overloading both into Alexx's mouth and onto the ground in front of him. His intakes heaved as he got his breath back and then his optics looked down to Alexx, who was now looking up at him.

"Thank you Alexx" he said.

The Shifter femme nodded and smiled, before wiping her mouth off and standing up. Optimus deactivated his holoform and held his servo down for her to climb up on, he didn't bother to put his spike away, he didn't really need to considering she already knew what he looked like and didn't seem fazed at all by it hanging there.

"You're welcome. Now, what're we gonna do about these people who want you off the planet?" She asked.

Optimus cycled his intakes, there wasn't much he  _could_ do about these humans. After all, freedom of speech is something the Americans prided themselves on, nothing was going to change that.

"I am unsure Alexx, but you must understand how they feel. Because of us, Earth was almost knocked out of gravitational orbit..." He began.

Alexx shook her head.

"No because of  _Sentinel_  and the  _Decepticons_ , the Earth was almost knocked out of orbit, not because of you!" She exclaimed.

Again Optimus cycled his intakes.

"Would this have happened if we were not here?" He asked.

Alexx shrugged and nodded at the same time.

"It could have, after all if you guys didn't come to get the cube, then the Decepticons would've taken over the planet and we would all be slaves and I would have been caught by the ASTS a long time ago and used as a breeder" she said.

Optimus nodded and cycled his intakes.

"Perhaps we should have seen this coming, now that the Decepticons are gone, we are not needed" he said.

Alexx huffed at that had looked up into his optics.

"That's not true and you damn well  _know_  that's not true. The Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad is still out there, the Shifters still need you,  _I_  still need you" she said.

Once again Optimus cycled his intakes and looked down at his mate. She was right, even though they weren't fighting a war against the Decepticons anymore, there was still the war against the Anti-Shifter Terrorist Squad, but there was also a problem with that.

"We have sworn to protect humanity Alexx, engaging with the ASTS will only fuel the proverbial fire for these humans who want us off of this planet" he said.

Alexx shook her head.

"I'll die before they get you off of this planet" she stated.

Optimus' optics opened wide and he shook his head too.

"No you will not Alexx, if the humans wish for us to leave then we will leave in peace" he said.

Alexx growled.

"You fucking won't! I won't let you leave without a fight and if that means that I have to die to keep your guys from leaving or to keep you living then that's what I'll bloody well do and you can't do shit about it!" She exclaimed.

Optimus glared at her and took a deep cycle inwards ready to start his own tirade against her for suggesting such a thing, however he found that the words wouldn't come. No matter how much her words hurt him, he couldn't find it in himself to be angry at her. If anything his spark the traitor that it was to his processor, spared upon hearing her declamation of being willing to give her own life to save theirs. Silently he prayed to Primus that it wouldn't come to that.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(A Few Hours Later)**

Alexx was now sat with Ratchet in the med bay, the medic was talking to her about many different things, but mostly about how the troops that were of NEST were leaving. Only a few members remained now and that was mostly because of Alexx. Will, Epps and Private Matheson still treated the Autobots with respect, but the others...well it wasn't worth thinking about. Alexx was due in heat any day now and Ironhide, Jazz, Optimus and Ratchet knew this as they knew the signs by now, she was flirting with them more than usual and wearing more provocative clothing, not to mention her scent had changed.

He had to admit, being mated to a Shifter was very demanding, not only was she human and could be hurt easily, but she was almost always in heat and he thanked Primus that they weren't genetically compatible. Otherwise she would've had several sparklings by now and that was something that they really  _didn't_  need. Suddenly Will came into the med bay with a woman in tow, instantly Alexx was on edge and Ratchet looked at her funny.

"What's wrong Alexx?" He asked.

Even Will gave her a funny look, this wasn't something she'd done since she'd met Sentinel. The rememberance of what happened after had both of them on edge. They looked at the female, who didn't seem bothered by the territorial display the Shifter femme was showing and that only made Alexx growl louder.

"Uh perhaps this isn't a good idea Cassandra" Will said.

The young woman looked at him and then shrugged. She hadn't really wanted to be here anyway, the only reason she was here was to scout the Autobots for the activist group which she also didn't want to be a part of, but her boyfriend was part of it so she had to be too.

"I don't care, just get me out of here" she said.

Will nodded and took the woman out of the med bay. Ratchet activated his holoform to try and calm Alexx down, but let out a yelp when he was jumped by the Shifter femme. Said femme began to kiss him roughly and he was ashamed to admit that her roughness was turning him on something fierce. His panel opened and immediately Alexx had her hand on it and was stroking him hard and fast. Clearly she was displaying both territorial and dominant behaviour, but Ratchet was powerless to stop her, it simply felt too good.

It wasn't long until he spilled his fluids inside his panel and over her hand. He couldn't believe that another female could get her so worked up that she felt like she had to defend her territory. He guessed it could've been worse though, he had read on this planet's Internet that some felines urinate and defecate on people and possessions they believed were theirs, so he guessed that he was lucky to have simply gotten a hand job from his mate.

She did the same with Ironhide and Jazz, though this time it wasn't a territorial or dominance display, it was simply her wanting to be close to her mates, to bring pleasure to her mates and strengthen the bond between them. Both mechs were of course happy to oblige her and enjoyed every minute of it.


	44. Chapter 44

Alexx had once again come into heat and the mechs were finding it very hard to concentrate on anything other than fragging her to within an inch of her life. Ratchet had been keeping himself busy by sorting out the med bay and was currently moving from pede to pede while organising his tools, his waste tanks were bordering on full, but he was putting it off because he wanted to get this done and it took his processor off of the need to frag Alexx. However, his urge was preventing him from organising his tools, he'd been staring at the table for a full five minutes and had hardly moved them at all let alone organise them. Suddenly Alexx came into the med bay and the medic silently groaned as he picked up her  _very_ tempting scent, he now had an additional problem to deal with, not only did he need to void, but now he had a throbbing erection making things worse. He was however, glad for the distraction from his waste tanks, that was until he realised that she'd noticed his movements.

"Something wrong Ratchet?" She asked.

Ratchet looked at her and saw the smirk that graced her features, he also noticed the way her chest heaved and a quick scan of her form revealed an elevated body temperature, dilated pupils and an elevated heart rate, all signs of human arousal. It perplexed him that she would be getting aroused over his obvious need to void and quickly accessed the Internet to find out if this was something that humans tended to get aroused over. What he found intrigued him greatly. ' ** _Urolagnia_** _(also **urophilia** ,  **undinism** ,  **golden shower**  and  **watersports** ) is a form of Salirophilia (which is a form of Paraphilia) in which sexual excitement is associated with the sight or thought of urine or urination. Other variations include arousal from wetting or seeing someone else urinate in their pants or underclothes. Urolagnia is sometimes associated with or confused with, arousal from having a full bladder or a sexual attraction to someone else experiencing the discomfort or pain of a full bladder, possibly a sadomasochistic inclination' *****_

The thought of Alexx finding his need to void arousing strangely had him becoming even more aroused himself. He stored this information away for later when he would share it with the other three, this could be something they could exploit to  _persuade_ Alexx to do things that she would usually say no too. Besides, it would be a good chance to finally experiment with her, they had so far experimented with threesomes and anal sex, perhaps Urolagnia would be something new to enjoy. Activating his holoform, Ratchet walked up to Alexx and moved himself so that he was behind her before moving his scent receptors to her neck.

"What're you doing Ratchet?" She asked.

The medic smiled against her skin and simply nuzzled her, his servo trailed across her throat, over her breasts, down her stomach and under her pants and underwear to rest against her womanhood.

"I am aware that you have become aroused by my obvious desire to void Alexx, I was wondering if maybe you wished to explore this" he replied.

He wiggled his middle finger and her response was instantaneous, she simply nodded and he smirked.

"Excellent, then I shall hold you here while you watch my real form become increasingly desperate to void. Would you prefer that I void involuntarily or dash to the extractor in a panic to void?" He questioned.

Alexx moaned and panted a little.

"Either one is fine for me" she answered.

Ratchet nodded and slowly moved his finger over her sensitive bundle of nerves, slowly building up the pleasure as his real form squirmed and shifted from pede to pede and even on occasion pressed his servo to his panel. He could feel how aroused she was getting, but aside from the physical signs he could feel, he was also monitoring her form, the other signs were increasing too. He decided that, rather than make a huge mess in the med bay, he would allow her to see his struggle to contain his waste fluids and then make a mad dash towards the extractor to relieve his tanks. His real form opened up his panel to allow the Shifter femme to see his semi-hard spike that was beginning to drip with repressed waste fluids. This only seemed to elevate her arousal even more and he had to slow his finger down a little to make sure that she didn't overload before he got the chance to void. He then decided that maybe just his finger wasn't enough and he pulled her pants and panties off of her, spread her legs and bent her over just a little. He entered her from behind and then straightened her back up, holding her there with his arm around her waist, he began to thrust in time with his moving finger.

Soon, the dripping turned into dribbles which turned into spurts, which turned into rather impressive leaks and his holoform' stinger was moving over Alexx's clitoris with such ease and he could feel that she was getting ready to overload which was good, because he was sure he couldn't hold for much longer. After a longer leak that had his holoform speeding up his thrusts and his finger, he made that mad dash towards the extractor and released his waste fluids with a loud sigh from his mouth and a very loud hiss from his spike all at the same time as his holoform and Alexx overloaded. He watched as Alexx calmed down and watched as he too finally finished voiding and put himself away, he looked down at her and smiled.

"Do you feel better now Alexx?" He asked.

Alexx nodded and smiled at him.

"That was wonderful, thank you Ratchet" she replied.

Ratchet nodded and his holoform helped her to get dressed, before sending her on her way while he cleaned up the mess that he had made. As he did, he shared the information he had found earlier with Jazz, Ironhide and Optimus, perhaps it would come in handy for them too.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Optimus)**

This heat of Alexx's was taking a toll on him, he was finding it hard to concentrate on anything but the scent he found wherever he went. Many times today he'd had an erection that didn't seem to want to go away and right now was no exception. The information he'd received from Ratchet was no help either, the fact that Alexx had become very aroused by witnessing Ratchet's urge to void and her willingness to experiment in Urolagnia made him even more aroused. As she walked towards him, he scanned her and found that her bladder was around half full, perhaps he could give her a chance to relieve herself and see if that too arouses her. Opening up his cab door, he felt her climb into him and he started up his engine.

"Where're we going?" She asked.

Optimus' cab rumbled and he pulled out of the base, heading towards the hill she enjoyed going to so much. He activated his holoform and looked at her.

"I wish to further explore this Urolagnia with you Alexx, I am quite curious as to what this  _Golden Shower_ is" he answered.

Alexx smiled at him and nodded.

"Well, showing you would be better than telling you" she said.

Optimus nodded and smirked.

"I predicted you would say that, which is why I am taking us to the hill you like" he stated.

Alexx nodded and soon they arrived. Optimus cut his engine and turned towards her.

"What is it you would wish for me to do?" He asked.

The Shifter femme grinned and got out.

"Activate your human holoform, strip and lay down on the grass" she ordered.

Optimus did exactly what she told him to do and then watched as she too got undressed, she then came to stand over his chest and relaxed. He gasped as a warm torrent of urine flowed from her body onto his, flowing over his chest and down his sides and stomach, some even went over his neck and the feeling caused him to find himself become aroused, however he was also aware of his own need to void, but perhaps she would allow him to return the favour when she was done. After a couple of minutes of her urination, she finally stopped and by this time he was rather aroused, he looked up to her.

"That was most stimulating, may I return the favour?" He asked.

She nodded and then lay down on the grass, Optimus smirked and his holoform stood back while his real form transformed and his opened his panel. He made sure that his flow wouldn't smother her, before releasing his own waste fluids onto her body. He became even more aroused by the sight of her covered in his waste fluids, she truly was a sight to behold. As soon as he was done, his holoform practically pounced on her and thrust himself into her, not that she was complaining but still. They both began to thrust rather erratically and it wasn't long until they both reached overload and once again Optimus' holoform moved so that his real form could overload all over her. His optics ghosted over her and he took a mental image of her covered in both his overload fluid and his waste fluid.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Jazz)**

Her scent was throwing him off, he even went outside so he could at least try to clear his processors, but when he saw Optimus come back with a very wet and very covered in overload fluids Alexx in his cab, his spike was immediately very hard. He had received the information that Ratchet had sent and he had to say that he was intrigued by her arousal by seeing their need to void. He too had looked up Urolagnia and had read up on it some more and decided that he would experiment with clothes wetting. Perhaps she would become aroused by watching him void involuntarily, it would be interesting to see. Optimus stopped and Alexx got out of him, a very  _naked_ Alexx stepped onto the ground, his holoform was instantly behind her and wrapping his arms around her form.

"Ya look like ya had fun babe" he said.

Alexx nodded and he smiled, inhaling deeply. She smelled absolutely gorgeous even with Optimus' fluids all over her, his hands began to wander her body and he felt that she was still very aroused by whatever had happened with Optimus, he used that to his advantage. He looked through the Internet to find the right words and then he moved his lips to her ear.

"Frag babe, I really need to piss" he whispered.

He scanned her and was delighted when her arousal heightened. Maybe this would be more fun than he anticipated. He moved her towards his alt form and opened his door for her.

"We goin' someplace more private fer dis" he said.

Alexx nodded and got into his alt form and Jazz took them to a more private area. It took them a couple of hours to get there and in that time Jazz was moving in the driver's seat and he could smell how aroused it was making her. Soon they arrived at the place, which was a private beach that he'd managed to find a way into. He cut his engine and continued to squirm around in his alt form, watching as Alexx got more and more aroused.

"Woulja rather I did dis in me real form?" He asked.

Alexx nodded and he nodded too, she then got out of his alt form and watched as he transformed, though it seemed that the effort of transforming cracked the dam as he leaked as he stood up, causing a trickle of fluid to escape his panel.

"Sorreh babe, might be a lil short on de show" he said.

He really hadn't realised how full his tanks were and within half an hour he was at his breaking point. Fluid now routinely leaked out of his spike and caused his panel to drip, until he gave up the fight voluntarily lest he cause damage to his waste tanks. He voided through his panel and groaned at the feeling. Within his moan though, he heard her moan and as soon as he was finished, his holoform was active and pushing her to the ground, before thrusting into her while his real form jerked himself off hard and fast. Soon they both overloaded, though Jazz was a gentlemech and his real form overloaded somewhere next to Alexx instead of on her.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Ironhide)**

It had been a few hours since he'd seen Alexx go off with Jazz and he'd used that time to look over the information Ratchet had presented him with and he liked what he'd found. So his mate got aroused by seeing them get desperate to void did she? He could accommodate that quite easily, his tanks were beginning to get quite full and as Alexx and Jazz came back he was pretty disappointed to find that Alexx was asleep in the front seat. However, he knew that it wouldn't be long until she woke up and would be satiating again. Jazz transferred her form to Ironhide's alt form and then the silver mech went off to rest. Ironhide let the Shifter femme rest while he thought of what he could do, from what he'd seen, Jazz had involuntarily voided in front of her, Ratchet had held his waste until he could hold it no more and Optimus had voided on her, perhaps he should take on the role of a dominant and get her to taste his fluids for being so naughty as to allow the other mechs to have at her first. A malicious grin spread over his lips as he waited for her to wake up. When she did, he immediately got her out of his form and took her towards the showers.

"What's going on?" She asked.

Ironhide smiled down at her and set her onto her feet while he got the shower ready for her.

"Ya look exhausted femme, so yer gonna get a shower and as the humans say, hair of the dog" he said.

Alexx nodded, knowing full well what hair of the dog included, perhaps sex was what she needed to wake her up, sleeping for two hours made her even more tired that it ever had done before, whether it was because she was getting older or not she didn't know. However, when they got into the shower, Alexx picked up on the subtle movements of Ironhide and found herself becoming aroused again. So far three of her mechs had wanted to explore Urolagnia with her and though it was very stimulating, she didn't really want to be covered in piss or anything anymore.

"Babe, can we not do the piss thing? Jazz, Ratchet and Optimus have done it with me and I'm a little sore" she said.

Ironhide gave her a simple look and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Then this will teach you for not coming to me first. On your knees" he said.

She had to admit that the prospect of what he had planned for her turned her on even more and she decided to give him a run for his money per se. She deliberately disobeyed him and this caused him to press down on her shoulder harder.

"Frag it femme, I said get down on yer knees!" He ordered.

With one extra push, she dropped to her knees in the shower. Outside his real form was by the waste extractor and when his holoform 'commanded Alexx to open her mouth and then 'forced' her to open her mouth, he released a sigh of relief as he was able to release all the waste fluids in his tanks. In the shower, his holoform had started voiding into Alexx's mouth, which quickly became full and started overflowing, he found it erotic to watch his fluids run down her neck, down her chest, over her breasts, down her abdomen and down her legs onto the floor of the shower. He kept going for about three minutes before his stream tapered off and he pulled her up, pressing a kiss to her lips and ignoring the taste of his own fluids in her mouth. He then lowered himself down and began to lick at her private folds, before his tongue entered her labia majora and began to tease her clit.

When he deemed her wet enough, he rose back up and brought her legs around his waist, carefully slipping his spike into her as he began to thrust really slow. As he did this, he languidly kissed her and stroked her breasts at the same time, he wanted to make sure that they were both pleasured. His real form was still stood by the extractor, on Cybertron it wasn't unusual to walk in on a mech having a self induced overload in the extraction area, so he didn't mind doing it here. It didn't take long for them to both be near their peaks and Ironhide sped his thrusts up just enough to send her over the edge first, he then followed with a primal grunt and rested his head against her shoulder.


	45. Chapter 45

**(One Year Later)**

Another year had passed and relations between the humans and the Autobots were getting worse. now every time one of the Autobots took Alexx out, they were immediately spotted and some humans threw rotten fruit at them and others just yelled. Thankfully there were still a few humans who enjoyed the presence of the Autobots and they had formed a secret alliance with the Autobots. Some new Autobots had also secretly landed on Earth and Alexx found herself drawn to one of them, though he was an ex-Decepticon Thera liked him a lot. She had even suggested to the other four mechs about taking on a fifth mate. At first, the others had been hesitant to do so because of what it could do to her head, but she had assured them that if she could live with four of them in her head then she could live with one extra.

Walking up to the Bugatti Veyron, she carefully ran a hand over the side panels and the hood before stopping right in front of it. She looked at the vehicle and then saw an Asian kind of male appear in the drivers seat.

"Hello" she said.

He got out of the car and walked up to her, taking her hand and bowing to kiss it. He looked up at her with his bright blue eyes and smiled at her.

"Konichiwa Miss Alexx" he whispered.

Alexx blushed and smiled. Though chivalry wasn't new to her, Optimus had shown it to her on many occasion and so had Ratchet and Jazz, but this was something new entirely.

"Hello Drift is it?" She asked.

He nodded and she nodded too before clearing her throat and moving to sit upon his hood. She smiled at him and took a deep breath.

"So I'm just gonna come out and say it, Thera likes you and I mean a  _lot,_ she believes that you could be another mate for us. So, I have a question to ask you" she explained.

Drift nodded and stepped closer to her, tilting his head in obvious interest. Alexx took another deep breath and thought of the right way to word her question so that she wouldn't offend him.

"If you had the chance, would you take Thera and I as a mate as Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet have?" She asked.

Drift blinked a couple of times, he couldn't believe that she was asking this. It wasn't a bad thing of course, but for a human to be paired with not one but  _five_  Autobots, well it seemed impossible to him.

"I would be honoured to" he finally said.

Alexx grinned up at him. She was glad that he liked the idea and stood up, before walking up to him and pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"You won't be disappointed, just ask Optimus and the others" she said.

She tapped his cheek a little and walked off. Drift watched her go with a smile upon his face, he would've never thought that he would be getting a proposition to mate from a human femme, not even when he was a Decepticon. But then again, back when he was a Decepticon he would probably have...no stopping those thought processes right there, he did  _not_  want to think about what he would've done had he still been a Decepticon. He was an Autobot now and that's all he needed to think about.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(ASTS)**

To say that Clive was pissed off would be an understatement. He was  _beyond_  pissed off right now. Not only had he lost the only chance to showcase his Shifter army, not only had he lost Alexx  _again_ , but he had also lost Dylan because of her. Right at this very moment he hated that abomination with a vengeance. However, it seemed that all was not lost when one of the Shifters came in telling him that two men had arrived to talk to him. Schooling his features, he motioned for the Shifter to bring the two men in. When they had, he simply looked at them.

"What can I do for you gentlemen?" He asked.

One of the men, an older man looked at Clive and smiled.

"I heard that you have a bit of a pest problem" he said.

Clive glared at him and grunted.

"You could say that" he said.

The older man nodded and looked to the younger man who was obviously ex-army.

"I think we can solve his problem don't you?" He asked.

The ex-army guy simply nodded and the older guy looked back at Clive.

"I believe I have found a way to help you with your problem" he said.

Clive raised an eyebrow and made a circle motion with his hand his way of telling the man to carry on or continue.

"I have found out what these  _transformers_  are made out of and I currently have some men ready to start harvesting the raw materials. But, I have come here to ask for your army's help. With their superior hearing and sight, we can find the aliens easier than with just normal humans" he said.

Clive nodded and put his hands together.

"And you are certain that you can get me my abomination?" He asked.

The older man nodded.

"Ninety five percent certain sir. By the time we're finished, she'll be alone and vulnerable" he said.

Clive nodded.

"You do realise that many people have told me that they can catch my abomination and every time she's either managed to escape from here or slip through their hands. The girl's smart, she knows that if she starves herself and stops drinking, her chances of conceiving go from extremely high to absolute zero" he explained.

The older man nodded.

"I think I may have a solution for that too. It would require her being unconscious for a brief time until she is near her heat cycle and then we put her in with a male and let him have his way with her" he said.

Clive nodded.

"And if she were to try and self abort the infant?" He asked.

The older man shrugged.

"Then we put her back under sedation until the time comes for her to give birth" he said.

Clive grinned evilly at this and nodded. He stood up and held his hand out towards the man.

"We have a deal Mr..." He began.

The other man took the hand and shook it, smiling.

"Attinger. Harold Attinger" he said.


	46. Chapter 46

**(One Year Later)**

Another year had passed and still the relations between the humans and the Autobots were getting worse, especially with a new activist group called Cemetary Wind popping up and attempting to take the Autobots out. However, the relationship between Alexx and Drift had improved dramatically with Drift spending as much time as possible with Alexx and Alexx splitting her time between Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide, Ratchet and Drift. On a hot summers day in July, Alexx had suggested a little bonding time between her and her mechs and had offered to give them all a thorough wash and wax, it had however leaked to the rest of the mechs that this was going to happen and suddenly Crosshairs, Hound, Jolt, Sideswipe, Leadfoot and the other mechs all wanted to have themselves a wash and wax too. Thankfully, the other humans who liked the Autobots had offered to help with the other four.

Optimus was up first and Alexx decided that she would explore her mates hotspots and perhaps give them the funnest experience of their lives. She washed all over Optimus' alt form, climbing over him to do the roof and she took special care on his smoke stacks. Feeling him tremble beneath her made her grin and the other mechs had their holoforms out watching the show, snickering as they realised just what Alexx was doing to the big mech. It wasn't long until Optimus overloaded and he then transformed and Alexx washed his panel out discreetly.

Next was Jazz and having seen what the Shifter femme had done to the Autobot leader, he had a fair idea that she would be doing the same to him. So, when she reached his wheel wells, he made no move to hide the moans of ecstasy as she scrubbed and caressed him. She thought she heard a faint click and then a glutteral grunt came from the silver mech, before everything went silent. The other humans weren't taking any notice, especially not Will who was looking forward to his retirement. Sure he was helping clean the cars, but even Alexx could see the grey spots coming into his hair, it would be good for him to spend some time with Annabelle and Sarah. When Jazz moved, Alexx realised what that click had been as there was a pool of a goopy substance with little silver flecks in it on the concrete. Quickly she washed it down to make room for Ironhide.

Soon both Ironhide and Ratchet were done, both having done the same as what Jazz had done and leaving her to clean up their mess. Thankfully the other mechs had been finished and now they along with the humans were resting inside the base as Drift came and parked up in front of her. She got to work instantly, not knowing Drift like she knew her other four mates, she had to work hard to find his hotspots, so she tried everything. She gave his tailpipe a good seeing to...nothing. She attacked his wheel wells...a simple sigh of relaxation. She scrubbed at his rear fender and tail lights...nothing. She was about to give up when she heard a gravelly groan come from the blue Bugatti. She looked down to where the cloth was and grinned, it was right above the Bugatti insignia. She'd seen him when he transformed and that little symbol was right above his spark chamber.

Giving an evil grin, she began to scrub hard at that area, before caressing it with slow circles causing heat to build up through the mech. She then decided that to tease him, she'll leave that area for now and she went to work on his hood and doors and windows, though she did have to climb onto the hood to get to the windshield and do that properly. When she was done though, she tipped the water over him and began to dry him off before she put the wax on. She did everything else first and left that Bugatti symbol until last, when she leaned down and purposely licked all around that symbol, causing the engine to rev and his mech holoform to lean back in the drivers seat.

It wasn't long until Alexx felt a presence behind her and she stood up to see the mech with Crimson optics. She knew about the fact that he used to be Deadlock and she didn't care about it, in fact she'd told him that it kind of made her hot. So to see him like this had her temperature rising for reasons other than the heat in the air. The blue mech stalked up to her and pinned her against the hood of his alt form, seeing as she was only in a pair of cut off jean shorts and a bikini bra, he slipped his servo down her jean shorts and began to rub her clit the same way she was stimulating the symbol that was right above his spark chamber. Alexx moaned and tried to lean up into his touch, but he held her down his crimson optics watching her face. Once he was sure that she was right on the edge as he had been, he took the sponge out of the bucket and plopped it onto her stomach. She gasped at the feel of the tepid water on her hot skin and he grinned as he began to wash what he could of her. Though he didn't really care about her clothes, he didn't want her naked in front of the other humans, if he was going to be her mate then he would  _only_  share her with Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide and Ratchet.

Soon enough, he was aching to be inside of her, his spike was straining at his panel and he was by no means  _small_ however, he wasn't as big as Jazz or Optimus was. He looked down at her jean shorts and saw that the leg holes were quite wide and he could easily frag her without taking her clothing off. So, using a finger, he moved her bikini bottoms out of the way and let his panel slide back to reveal his hard and gold coloured spike. First, he teased her labia with the tip and then he pushed into the Labia Majora and began to rub his spike over her clit and down her labia minora to her vaginal opening where he made his spike circle it a few times before plunging into her. She started to moan loudly, but he covered her mouth with his hand.

"Shhh, we don't want the others to know what we're up to now do we?" He asked.

She shook her head and he smiled at her, if she didn't know any better she would've thought that he was going all Decepticon on her again, but she  _did_ know better and even though she found it weird, the fact that he was all crimson opticed and all Decepticon like was turning her on something wicked. He slowly began to thrust into her, making sure that with every thrust he made, the tip of his spike bumped her cervix. However, he was keeping an eye on her to make sure that he wasn't hurting her, the minute she started to show signs of being in pain he would stop. Slowly he began to get faster and harder with his thrusts and it wasn't long until his alt form was violently rocking on its shocks, anyone who looked out of the base at the blue Bugatti would know what was happening, but he couldn't find it within himself to care. He was more concentrating on bringing her to overload before he even  _thought_ about overloading within her. Of course, having been reassured by Ratchet that their overload fluids held no DNA that was compatible with that of Alexx's DNA, he wasn't entirely sure about releasing his fluids within her. He thought about pulling out when she orgasmed around him, but when he tried to do so, she wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him to her. Instinctively, his chest plates opened and she pulled him down to complete the bond just as he overloaded.

When finished, Drift leaned his forehead against hers and looked at her, his crimson optics looking into her hazel ones and he smiled. He had to admit, that was pretty intense, he was so glad that she'd allowed him to do that he'd thought that his red optics and Decepticon-esque demeanour would scare her off, but was happy to see that it hadn't. He carefully pulled out of her and she surprised him by pressing her lips to his. The bond was complete now and he was officially one of her mates, but he too was worried about what so many mechs would do to her head. He would have to have Ratchet keep an optic on her for a while after this pleasurable encounter.


	47. Chapter 47

**(One Year Later)**

Another year had passed and now things between the Autobots and the humans were at a critical point. Cemetery wind had already taken out several of the Autobots that had been placed around the world for their safety and the remaining Autobots were understandably worried for their own lives, none more so than Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide, Ratchet and Drift. They knew that if either one of them was offlined, then Alexx would be in much pain. Sideswipe, Jolt and some of the other Autobots had decided to leave the planet and Alexx had managed to convince Jazz and Ironhide to do the same. It hadn't been easy and they had kicked up a fuss, but now that they had gone into space Alexx now only had Optimus, Ratchet and Drift to worry about.

Optimus had seen these humans and what they were doing and he had sent a message to the rest of the Earthbound Autobots to hide and try to keep safe. Now only he, Ratchet and Alexx remained at the base. Will had since retired and was now spending as much time as he could with Sarah and Annabelle, but he still worried about Alexx. He hadn't told Sarah what was happening, all he said was that she was travelling with her mates and she would be back when she could be.

Alexx had been training hard since Ironhide and Jazz had left and she was now on the cusp of being ready to merge with Thera, she just needed to give it that little last push. She was in the gym when she heard a loud crash and one of the soldiers had run into the gym yelling about Cemetary wind having found their location. Immediately Alexx dropped what she was doing and ran out to find Optimus, Ratchet and Drift attempting to shield themselves from barrages of fire from the humans. At seeing this, Thera took over and ran over to the men and started to beat them down one by one. She took bullets herself, but adrenaline stopped her from feeling the pain as she ran from one man to the next, breaking necks, ripping out hearts, ripping arms off. It wasn't until one of the soldiers fired at her left shoulder point blank that she stopped and looked at him, time seemed to slow down as she heard Ratchet yell her name and she looked to him, before looking down at her gushing wound. She felt herself falling, first onto her knees her whole body shook with the impact and then down flat onto her face, Ratchet's voice still ringing in her ears.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(Alexx's Head)**

Her eyes shot open and she was back in the field she had first met Thera in. Getting to her feet she looked around, the trees were still as was the grass and birds no longer flew overhead. Instead, when she looked into the sky it was a crimson red and her mouth dropped open. It was then she heard a voice.

"Get out of here and get up!" The voice yelled.

She turned around to see Thera stood there, the same wounds on the other female's body as was on hers. Alexx shook her head.

"I can't" she whispered.

Thera growled and stepped forward.

"I didn't think you were ready for this, but I have no choice" she said.

She strode up to Alexx and put her hand on the other female's head, both screamed in agony before Alexx found herself waking up in the field again. This time the birds were singing and she could hear the rustle of the trees and the swoop of the grass where she hadn't been able to hear it before, she could feel the breeze where she hadn't been able to do so before and she suddenly felt stronger. She nodded to herself and then closed her eyes...

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Normal)**

...Waking up with her left cheek firmly planted on the floor. She placed her palms either side of her body and pushed herself onto all fours, before sitting up on her knees. Looki down at the floor below her, she saw the pools of blood where she had been laying and suddenly her ears caught something. She looked around and moved to the side, just as a kick swooped past her ear. Getting up, she began to fight with the man, her movements more fluid and faster than before and she managed to thrust her palm up the man's nose hard, sending his nose up into his skull and killing him.

Optimus, Ratchet, Drift, Crosshairs, Bumblebee and Hound were astonished to see her moving like this and suddenly Ratchet's optics brightened.

"She did it" he said.

Both Optimus and Drift looked at him oddly and Ratchet turned to them with a smile upon his face plates.

"Alexx and Thera merged together, that is why Alexx is moving as fast and as fluidly as she is. Finally she has become what Thomas said an Alpha Shifter should be" he said.

The two mechs looked at her and nodded. The way she was moving, ducking blows here, landing blows there, doing moves of such an athletic kind with such perfection that a trained gymnast would be envious. It was clear to see that she was something different, something beautiful, something  _deadly_. Optimus looked at the others and nodded, they would give Alexx the backup she needed and they started to fire at the humans too. One by one, the humans went down while the drone above them watched on.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Cemetary Wind HQ)**

"Mr. Attinger sir. Group Five located the Autobot base in Washington, they're under heavy fire" a man said.

Attinger hurried over to the computer and watched the scene unfold, he watched as the abomination that Clive had told him about cut through his men like a hot knife through butter and the way she was moving almost had him transfixed, until he realised that she'd just killed the last man in that team. Then she looked up at the drone and threw a weapon towards it, cutting off their video link to the scene.

"Damned it!" He yelled.

He slammed his fist down on the console and looked around. After seeing what she could do, he understood now that he  _had_ to have that girl, whether it meant deceiving Clive or not. She was way to valuable to simply leave alone. A girl like that fighting for them, helping them bring down the Cybertronians, well he'd be unstoppable. A huge grin lit up his face at the thought of having her do all of his bidding, she would work well with James.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx)**

Once the last man had been cut down and the drone destroyed, she looked towards the mechs.

"We need to go to ground. They'll be searching for us with more vigour now. Find places to hide the lot of you. Optimus, warn everyone about these humans so they know to hide then hide yourself" she said.

Optimus nodded and sent out the message, everyone got it including the mechs who were in the base, so they knew to stay hidden until the all clear was given. They all transformed and quickly left the base, all went their separate ways, except Alexx and Ratchet who stayed together until they reached Hong Kong.


	48. Chapter 48

Hiding, she hated it with a passion. She'd not hidden from anything since she'd first met the Autobots. Her mates, one hand unconsciously came up to rub her aching chest just thinking about them, with Optimus having been injured by humans, Ironhide and Jazz in space and Drift in hiding and Ratchet being hunted, she felt so lost. A quick glance towards the derelict ship the medic was hiding in made her sigh, after everything the Autobots had been through to protect the humans from the Decepticons, this was how they repaid them, by hunting them. The sound of rotor blades caught her attention and she ducked to avoid the search lights that were flying around. Another quick glance to the derelict ship showed that the humans had found Ratchet and she felt her heart sink, as bad as it was of her out of all her mates Ratchet was her favourite, maybe it had something to do with him being her first mate she didn't know. An explosion shook the ground and her eyes widened to see that Ratchet had been exposed, her heart skipped a beat and tears gathered in her eyes.

"Run Ratchet! Run!" She yelled.

She watched as the mech tried to do exactly that, only to be forced to transform by another explosion. Instantly she was on the move, she knew that she couldn't do much to help him, but she knew that she had to do  _something,_ there was no way she was going to let them kill Ratchet without a fight. Soon she was close enough to hear what Ratchet and the humans were saying and anger ripped through her at the sound of one human saying that Ratchet would get no sympathy from him, before they began to shoot again.

"No!" She screamed.

She ran out and attempted to beat the humans down, but they overpowered her and she was forced to watch as another Cybertronian joined the fight. She screamed more when Ratchet was knocked to the ground and the other mech walked up to him and she was surprised when Ratchet identified him as Lockdown. A pained howl escaped her when Ratchet's spark was ripped from his chest and she battled with the humans until they let her go. Stricken with pain and grief and not thinking clearly, she ran over to her dead mate, picking up his spark as she went. When she reached him, she put his spark back into his chest and waited.

"No!" She cried.

She took it out, turned it over and put it back in again. She did this multiple times, before picking the spark up, taking a bite out of it accidentally swallowing some Energon in the process, before pulling her knife out of her boot, slitting her wrist and letting her blood dribble into his spark. She waited, nothing happened.

"No! You come back to me you giant metal bastard!" She cried.

She started banging on his chest and sobbing loudly, calling him every name under the sun until her efforts became more and more sluggish. Eventually a combination of blood loss and Energon poisoning sent her into a state of Limbo, the place between life and death.

**_~Shifting Hearts~_ **

**(In Limbo)**

Alexx woke with a start. Her eyelids snapped open and she was breathing heavily. Her eyes scanned the area, but all she could see was dense fog that seemed to have a pink tinge to it. Getting to her feet, she looked around more.

"Where am I?" She asked.

Her words were echoed back to her and she looked down to her feet to find that she was standing on the same fog that was all around her.

"Am I dead?" She asked again.

Yet again her words were echoed back to her. Suddenly another voice appeared and she jumped a mile.

"No child, you are not dead yet" it said.

The voice sounded a little like Optimus' voice and she looked around trying to find where it had come from, but everywhere she looked turned up empty.

"Who are you?" She questioned.

Then a young man appeared in front of her and she looked him over. He was rather good looking, not fat but not thin either, his hair was brown and cropped and his eyes, they were the most brilliant red she'd ever seen. Then it hit her,  _red_ eyes. Quickly she backed away from him, but he simply stayed where he was

"Do not fear me child, I am Primus" he said.

Her eyes opened wide and she swallowed, before looking around again.

"Why'm I here?" She asked.

Primus held out his hand and smiled at her. It was a kind smile, the kind of smile a Decepticon would never be able to pull off.

"Come child and all shall be explained" he said.

Cautiously she walked up to him and took his hand. They began to walk as as they did he explained that she was in a state of limbo, not quite dead but not fully alive either. He told her that she was there because the Energon she swallowed was causing too much damage on her insides and when she slit her wrist, her healing properties couldn't handle the pressure and she ended up here.

"I have been watching over you Alexx Lennox, I have seen the pain you have been through for your mates and I am prepared to offer you a choice. You can die and allow Ratchet to live on, or you can allow him to die and be with him here for all eternity" he said.

Alexx looked at him and then looked down. She had ended up here trying to bring him back to life, she didn't care what it would do to her, she was prepared to face whatever consequences that came from her trying to revive him as long as he was alive.

"I want to die" she said.

Primus looked at her and gave her a raised eyebrow.

"Are you sure of this Alexx? Once this deal is done it can never be undone" he said.

Alexx nodded and smiled.

"I'm 100% sure. I always said I'd willingly give my life so that my mates may live and now's my chance to fulfil that promise. Let me die so that Ratchet can live" she said.

He nodded and then looked at her.

"What if your mate refuses this gift?" He asked.

She looked at him sadly and smiled.

"Tough, the deal is done" she replied.

Primus nodded and put his hand on her shoulder.

"When it is done, I will give you five minutes with him" he said.

She thanked him and he disappeared.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Ratchet's Limbo)**

Ratchet awoke similarly to Alexx and he too looked around and saw the fog with the pink hue. Standing up, he instantly recognised the place, it was as other mechs and femmes had described. The well of Allsparks, that meant he was dead, offline, gone. He remembered Alexx fighting the humans and trying to get to him, he vaguely saw her trying to put his spark back into his chest as his processor offlined and it pained him to know that she was so distraught, how he wished he could comfort her.

"Your wish is my command" a voice said.

Ratchet turned around to see a form very much like that of The Fallen standing there. Immediately a sense of knowing washed over him and he remained calm.

"Primus" he vented.

The large mech smirked and then walked towards him.

"Today is your lucky day Ratchet, a deal has been made and you are going back to whence you came" he said.

This confused the medic and he looked up at the large mech.

"What do you mean I'm going back? Who made the deal?" He asked.

Primus tapped his shoulder.

"She made good on her promise Ratchet, she's given her life so that you may receive yours again" he replied.

It took a while, but eventually Ratchet got what Primus was saying and he shook his head.

"No, I cannot take this, I  _will not_ take this" he stated.

Primus cycled his intakes.

"Tough, the deal has been made" he said.

Ratchet looked at him and he held his servos up.

"Your mates words not mine. Now your body will be repaired and you will go back to it. I will give you five minutes to say goodbye to Alexx" he said.

He then disappeared and Ratchet watched as his body was repaired and then he woke up...

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Normal)**

...inside his own body. Sitting up he quickly caught Alexx's body as it fell off of his chest. He looked around and saw that the humans who had helped Lockdown offline him seemed shocked and confused, but when he looked down into his servo, all of that was forgotten. Alexx lay there, with a small smile upon her pale lips and small tears running down her face.

"Hello you" she whispered.

Ratchet looked at her and felt his own optics fill with lubricants.

"Alexx, what have you done?" He asked.

The cracked and pale lips of his mate smiled again and her hand came up to lay on his chest weakly.

"I made good on my promise, to give my life so that you could live" she whispered.

Her breathing was laboured and she had to stop for breath after every couple of words, but he understood her just fine.

"Oh Alexx you shouldn't have done it" he said.

Once again she smiled.

"It was worth it, to see you one last time. Tell Optimus...tell Optimus that I love him and tell...tell Ironhide, Drift and Jazz that too" she whispered.

Ratchet nodded and a tear dropped onto her arm, she only smiled.

"Don't cry for me Ratchet, I'll always be with you" she said.

The medic watched as the light in her eyes began to fade and he jostled her to keep her awake a little longer.

"Stay with me" he begged.

Another smile appeared on her lips as she closed her eyes.

"Goodbye Ratchet, I love you" she whispered.

Then she was gone, her skin was deathly pale and her lips were an unhealthy shade of grey. Ratchet kept jostling her and calling her name, trying to get her to wake up, but when she wouldn't he simply began to sob into his servo. The humans watched this and quite a few took their hats off and bowed their heads, fighting back their own tears. It's one thing to kill someone or something, but to have to watch such a loving final embrace was like watching a chick flick, it brought out the softer side of the men.

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Alexx's Heaven)**

Alexx once again woke up and this time she had tears streaming down her face. She stood back up and walked through the clouds to see three people standing there, she knew who they were and she gave a bit of a smile.

"We're so proud of you Alexx, you're such a brave girl" the woman said.

Alexx smiled again and simply walked past them. She wasn't in the mood to talk right now. She wasn't questioning her decision, but seeing how upset Ratchet was made her heart break. However, what was done was done and it couldn't be changed, not that she would want it to be changed anyway. She continued to walk and suddenly a mountain appeared in front of her. Slowly, she began to climb it and once she reached the top, she sat up there and cried. Soon, she stopped crying and just sat there with her knees pulled up to her chest, her arms crossed on top of them and her head on top of her arms. She didn't even look up when Primus came and sat beside her.

"You know, what you did took courage, strength and selflessness, three of the characteristics of a true leader, a Prime" he said.

She didn't answer him, so he just continued.

"You've done so much for your mates, you protected Samuel Witwicky's parents so Samuel could get to Optimus and revive him, you even got injured and kidnapped for that. You poisoned Sentinel to save Ironhide and you once again helped Samuel to help the Autobots by not allowing Dylan Gould to retrigger Sentinel's control Pillar and now you've given up your life to save Ratchet. You are a true warrior and the Autobots need someone like you" he said.

At this Alexx looked up at him and scoffed.

"Well it's too late now isn't it? I'm dead and I can't help them" she stated.

Primus smiled and nodded.

"That you are Alexx. However, if I gave you the chance to be with them again, would you become a warrior? Would you become a Prime born from myself?" He asked.

She looked at him and nodded.

"Yes, I would" she replied.

He looked at her.

"You would have to give up your ability to shift into an animal" he said.

Alexx shrugged.

"Fine by me, I won't lose Thera though will I?" She asked.

Primus turned to face her.

"Would it matter if you did?" He asked.

She shook her head.

"No, I've just kind of gotten used to having her there" she said.

He smiled.

"You will not lose Thera, just your ability to Shift. You will be getting something far greater" he said.

She looked at him and he opened his chest, pulling out a fully developed spark.

"You will become Cybertronian, but because you will be born from me, you will be a true Cybertronian. You will know how to speak Cybertronian and you will know your systems as if you'd had them all your life" he said.

Alexx nodded.

"Yes, I'll do it" she said.

Primus nodded.

"You will retain all of your memories and all of your mates. Plus, being a Prime means you can take as many mates as you want" he said.

He pointed towards a cloud and disappeared. Alexx looked up into the cloud and watched as Primus put the spark into her human body's chest and then she watched in awe as her human body grew in size and changed in shape, she laughed a little at the bewildered look upon Ratchet's face as this happened and then once the change was complete, Primus was next to her again.

"I will now remove your Shifter. It will be painful for you Alexx, but as soon as it is done you will return to your new body" he said.

Alexx nodded and Primus touched her shoulder, immediately she felt a searing pain all over her body, before she passed out and woke up...

_**~Shifting Hearts~** _

**(Normal)**

...in her new body. Start up processes flashed before her offlined optics and soon her optics powered up and she could see the world much clearer than she had been able to before. She vaguely heard someone calling her name and she looked around to see Ratchet there. Her optics filled with lubricants and she threw herself at him. Ratchet landed on the ground with an 'oomph' and laughed while stroking her helm. She quickly pressed her lips to his and he kissed back. He then pulled away and looked into her optics.

"You came back to me" he said.

She smiled and traced a hand over his chest.

"Always" she whispered.

It seemed like a happy moment when two lovers were reunited, however...


End file.
